I can be your hero
by The Goddess Sabelina
Summary: Once museum worker, now savior of the world. Now if only someone had told me they had already had put a deranged mummy in his grave once before, perhaps I could have jumped ship before it became round two. A story of Amber Graham and her journey into not so ancient Egypt. Movie centric, Ardeth/OC pairing. Rated T for now, subject to change.
1. The beginning

So this was something I've been working on for a while now, kinda collecting dust on my computer. Recently someone gave me the DVD (bless be the roommate) and I decided to post this.

Honestly Ardeth Bay is my childhood crush in the trilogy of movies and I just wanted to give him some love and finish out this beast that's been around forever.

I hope you all enjoy this and let me know what you think!

* * *

When you decide you want to become an Egyptologist by the age of five, you would think an individual would be sufficiently prepared for their work choice in life. I, however, had not been informed or expected the sheer amount of paperwork that I would have to fill out night after night. If I had a choice between a locust plague of Old Egypt or the paperwork, I might have chosen the locust plague.

Every night I would write until my hands cramp. I would type until I could not see the words on the page. I would sign until my signature bled into the fibers of muscle memory. Night after night I would go through the same motions and the same routine until I left for the night and would pick up the same motions the next day.

I was the bon mot definition of insanity by my first six month tenure at the Museum of London.

However, I could not have chosen a better profession.

I was the first woman to have been accepted as a preparator and it only took two and many years of internship to have been chosen. Though I started only as an educator in the museum, doing tours and other side shows, I had fought tooth and nail to be upgraded to an art handler. This was my true passion, working with artifacts and being one of the first eyes to see a piece of history, to know its true form, the facts, and the memories associated with it.

To put it simply: I adored my job. I would do anything to keep it, to prove that a woman could be as viable as a man. A woman in academic circles was rare enough. It was a man's world and the fact that a woman could infringe on their space caused me more than a few setbacks and headaches. Yet here I was, years later, doing the job I had dreamed of doing. I was blazing the trail, proving to others that a female was just as capable as a male, or in fact, could be better than one.

This job was worth the paperwork, the cramping, the typing, and every other nuisance that was thrown my way.

That is why I was here late at night finishing up the detailed projects of new items that had just been catalogued. Technically I was supposed to have been gone hours ago but this paperwork had to have been done by the end of the day. The curator had ordered everyone out on this particular Wednesday, and honestly, why would the whole museum have to be evacuated on a Wednesday? Sure a Monday I could accept but the middle of the week? It was unbelievable. Especially with the influx of new artifacts and the amount of preparation I would have to do to create the spaces and exhibits for these artifacts. I could not have gone home even if I wanted to.

So instead of going home, pouring a glass of wine, and reading my current book in ancient Egyptian, I ignored the orders from the curator and chose to finish the paperwork instead. Thankfully after eight solid hours of work I managed to complete the required forms for the new artifacts. Tiredness had set in hours ago and I was past the state of zombie. Honestly at this point I could have been mistaken for an undead mummy or if the lighting was right, perhaps just a dead mummy instead.

I pushed away from the table with that thought, knowing it was well past time for me to get going. My purse and keys were quickly swiped from the hook beside the door, and I took a moment to lock the door behind me. My nameplate on the door shone at me and I smiled, as I did every time I came to my office. This was the symbol of my achievement and what I had accomplished and I would smile every day after for as long as I had my name on the door.

I took the familiar turns and corners to the rear exit when I heard voices coming from the corridor. Odd. There should be no one here. I know I was a workaholic and would stay but others? Not so much. My peers were to work on time and left on time because they could afford to. So it would not be any of my colleagues.

I opened my purse cautiously, knowing the weapon I always kept on me was within my hand's quick reach. Then slowly and as quietly as possible I began to turn away from the exit and towards the voices that I heard echoing down the halls.

A brief thought flittered across my mind, bringing the curator's visage into memory. It was true that he had been acting odd, recently. He'd always been the little prick but I'd put up with my feminine pride long enough to deal with him and take this job. Unfortunately since we worked in the same department I saw him more than I cared to and his misogyny hadn't diminished in the slightest. In fact he'd been quite the pompous asshole and that was saying something.

Recently though, I'd seen a curious woman with him. She was Egyptian of some sort; I'd heard her speaking ancient Egyptian with ease. I had thought her another expert or something of the like. Something about her though always seemed off, that smile too perfect. A warning sign had kept me away from her and I had little to no contact with her for the past month. I planned to keep it that way.

There were other things too. Jobs hiring that I didn't even understand. Who even is a cultural Egyptian? Why did we need an Egyptian artifact guard? We already had the protection staff. Random people would come through the business quarters that I did not recognize. I did not question the curator or his need for such things because I knew what an inquiry would do to me. It would be the end of my career and I didn't want that at all.

So instead now I stalked the Egyptian mummy exhibition halls to find strange voices in a museum that was closed off to anyone with me technically trespassing after hours in which I might lose my job if I was caught.

Obviously I was not the brightest parchment in the box, so to speak. But I had my morals, and someone who could steal the artifacts (because what else could those voices be, honestly) should not be allowed in any society.

As I walked past the mummy exhibits, an ear shattering scream pierced the air around me. Mummies in the glass cases leapt to life, clawing at the glass cases around them. I screamed in horror as I whirled around. Every single mummy in the room was alive and screeching and wailing these unholy wails. They were literally dirt and bones with no skin and some even no muscles, no eyes, nothing, but the scratches on the glass were real. The wails I heard to my soul were real.

I realized they couldn't get out of the bulletproof cases at the moment and forced myself to calm and think rationally. Or as rational as one could get when possessed, dead mummies came to life. I reached into my purse and pulled out the pistol I always carried with me, the familiar weight in my hands calming me down. I held the weapon at my side as I tried to slow my breathing even as the screams continued around me.

"Who are you?" the voice had me whipping around and bringing my weapon up to point directly at the threat. Two men stood behind me, each of them with a gun of their own and both directly at my face.

One was armed with a shotgun and the other a sub-machine gun. The one with a shotgun was dressed as an archaeologist would, but with as much ammo strapped to him as he had, he wasn't here to look at fossils. His eyes were cold, angry, and deadly; he was pissed. The one with a machine gun was dressed in exotic attire dyed in all black. He had tattoos all over his face and looked as if he were from the middle east. He didn't seem to be here to steal and I didn't sense the leashed violence like I did from the archaeologist. Of course, that may have been my pheromones talking because he was also drop dead gorgeous.

"You two need to leave for your own safety." Robbers or not, no one deserved to be killed by deranged mummies. "I don't know what's going on and I don't care if you're here to rob the museum. Get out and I won't tell a soul." Because no one was going to believe this story even if I told it…but I wasn't going to tell them that.

The two men looked at each other and the archaeologist lowered his weapon. "You're not with them?" the archaeologist asked.

"I'm with the museum, yes." Again they looked at each other and faced with a sub machine gun still technically aimed at me, I expanded on my answer. "I'm a preparator. I was finishing up paperwork when these mummies came to life." The mummies in question were still clawing at the glass, but it was thick glass. Thank god.

"You need to get out of here," the man in black stated as he lowered his sub machine gun. As he lowered his weapon I lowered mine, but I was ready to lift and fire if they made a wrong move.

"No. Something's going on here and I have to make sure whatever is going on is contained in the museum. If these things get loose it would be a massacre." Though the mummies couldn't get out their fingernails left scratches in the glass. Only something wickedly sharp could damage glass of that caliber. "What are you two doing here?" They shared a look again and I sighed. "It can't be as odd as mummies coming back to life."

"You'd be surprised," the archaeologist muttered darkly.

"Try me," I snapped back.

"A cult led by your curator has successfully brought a crazy Egyptian advisor named Imhotep back to life and wants to use the army of the Anubis to take over the entire world. He's also kidnapped my wife to give to the crazy son of a bitch so he can kill her and use her body to resurrect his dead lover." I stared at him, blinked, and stared even more. He simply quirked an eyebrow at me.

"Touché." He gave me a dry look. "Let me guess, your wife is here now and that's why you came inside."

"Yes."

"We need to hurry," the man in black stated.

I sighed in frustration as I entertained the story in my head. I remembered the oddities of the curator, the mysterious woman and men, and the new tomb we had recently acquired that no one was to even look at or touch. I remembered the creepy vibe I felt around him and how I wasn't exactly safe. Had my instincts been right all along?

So if it _was_ true that the curator had indeed risen something evil from the grave I couldn't idly stand by. The museum was in the heart of the city and there would be so much death if these things got out. If it came down to my job or stopping the curator, I would sacrifice my job any day of the week. This was worth checking out, and the voices had already had me curious. Plus if it was just two crazy men it would be better if they went with me so I could keep an eye on them.

"I'll help you for now but I expect a damn good explanation later." I gestured with my head and tried to ignore the creepiness of the mummies around me as I walked past them. As I walked I pulled a case of bullets out of my purse and slid them into my pants pocket. I was probably going to need them.

We exited the mummy room and I gestured at the two men to bend down and creep to the balcony. A strong, deep voice was reciting ancient Egyptian – I had a PH.D in the language, I knew it well enough to recognize it – and I edged to the balcony and looked through the pillars.

If this had been any other situation, the shock displayed on my face would probably be comical. There were many people with blood red robes forming a circle around the curator, who was dressed as odd as they were and reading out of a book in front of him. A man in black robes stood near a roaring fire, a content and loving smile on his face as he looked past he curator. A black haired woman was strapped to a stone slab and being brought towards him by more people in blood red robes, struggling and screaming as she attempted to get loose.

"I'll be damned," I muttered as I managed to find my voice. I wasn't equipped to understand this surreal situation and was definitely going to question my sanity later.

"No, those would be the mummies," the archaeologist shot back sarcastically.

"So what's your plan?" I asked, bringing my weapon up to my face.

"Save my wife, don't get shot, run back out." I shook my head at the simple answer. Appreciated the simplicity, but this was not the time.

"What about the mummies? We have to kill them as well." I was adamant in this.

"The book the man is reading is the Book of the Dead. They only live as he reads the words," the man in black answered. I was surprised that the Book of the Dead had been found and that it indeed carried the powers the legends say it did. However it had definitely fallen into the wrong hands.

"Then he won't read the words," I replied simply.

At my confident tone the man in black glanced at me, held my gaze for a few seconds, and turned back to the scene in front of us. I didn't know exactly what the look was for, but if he was judging the extent of what I could help by if I was a woman, he was going to be surprised.

The screams intensified and I whipped my gaze down to the terrified woman. The stone slab she was bound to was being carried past the man in robes and towards a fire. I realized immediately they were going to burn her and went to look at the archaeologist for guidance. However, he was already gone. When I turned back to the scene I saw him landing on the stone slab, slamming the slab and cultists carrying it to the ground and away from the fire. Recognition swept through the cultist's faces and I realized the situation was about to go fubar. Typical.

"Kill him!" the curator ordered midly, as if he was ordering a coffee at a shop. My jaw dropped at the blasé tone but everyone took him seriously. Each man stood and turned towards the archaeologist, bringing their weapons to fire.

Beside me the man in black stood swiftly and began to spray bullets into the crowd below. I scrambled to the stone pillar near the start of the stairs and stood, looking down as I tried to remain hidden as much as possible. The curator had stopped speaking and grabbed the book, darting out of sight almost immediately. He wasn't reading the words and I didn't have a clear shot to kill him so I turned my attention to helping the archaeologist get his wife to safety.

They were edging back towards the stairs, darting between cover to cover as the archaeologist shielded his wife with his own body. The man in black was doing a damn fine job causing complete chaos but there was a few that escaped the hail of bullets. I saw one in particular raise his weapon to fire. I fired my gun and watched him crumple to the ground. I knew my shot was true and that he was dead, but I'd dwell on it later.

I picked off man after man that took aim and ran out of bullets. Deftly I emptied my weapon, uncaring the shells dropped onto the floor, and quickly reloaded from the pack of bullets from my pocket. As we continued to provide cover fire for the archaeologist and his wife, the strange man near the fire lifted his hands and roared. There were no words to describe the way his jaw lowered unnaturally or the sound of the horrific roar he made, only that it I knew I would hear it again in nightmares. Still I had one job and I needed to help get them out of here. I whipped the chamber back into the gun and I saw the man and his wife run past me. As they did I looked down and felt pure terror again. The mummies I had seen before were nothing compared to the ones taking shape near the undead mummy. If those before were the guards before these were the elite. We were so screwed.

"Destroy them!" the man commanded in ancient Egyptian, the smile on his face evil.

"Go!" The man in black cried, still spraying bullets into the crowd below. I wasted no time in following the two out the door and trusted the man to follow us. I ran through the room and noted the mummies had dropped where they had been struggling to get out of. That was at least taken care of but for now I'd continue to follow the nameless people.

I continued to run through the museum, following the two in front of my easily, and finally we burst out of the museum doors at full speed. The woman stopped suddenly and turned back to the door and I skidded to a halt, nearly tripping over myself in the quick stop. She darted to a nearby wooden bench and began to pull it in front of the door.

"Honey, what are you doing?" he demanded as he ran to her and grabbed her arm. "These guys don't use doors." He all but yanked her away and we kept running until we rounded a corner. There was a single car there and as they ran to it I assumed it was the archaeologist's. "Where the hell is Jonathon?" he demanded.

Suddenly a bus careened in front of us, slamming on the brakes as we reached it.

"Alex!" the woman cried.

"What's the matter with my car?" the archaeologist demanded as the woman darted to the bus entrance. I followed her with the man in black right behind me. I vaguely noted a child's voice and the driver arguing about whose idea it was but instead turned back to where we had just run from. Nothing was coming and nothing seemed wrong however I could sense this weird night wasn't done yet.

I flopped onto a nearby seat and sighed as my mind whirled. I had just fought against undead mummies, found out the curator was the head of a cult, and that apparently a woman was to be sacrificed to satisfy an ancient Egyptian's need for his lover. It was a lot to take it and I held my head in my hands.

"Are you all right?" the man in black asked.

"Yeah," I murmured as I lifted my head. "Except for the fact there are undead mummies, my museum was a front for ancient rituals, and my curator has sold his soul to an immortal being."

"It is not what one would expect," he agreed with a small chuckle. "What is your name?"

"Amber. And you?"

"I am Ardeth."

"I'd say it's a pleasure but it isn't really at the moment. I'll have to hold that off until later." Ardeth laughed at my small attempt at a joke and smiled. Looking at him now I realized he was exotic and beautiful all rolled into one. He had long black hair and dark but piercing eyes, his face Arabic and unusual to me.

I saw the archaeologist leap into the bus and noted the arguing up front had stopped. Ardeth stood and went to join him, looking back at the museum. As we pulled away the museum wall exploded outwards and from the debris the summoned mummies appeared. Rick was right; these mummies did not use doors. I made a mental note to put that in my next published work. The mummies spotted the bus and began to run, picking up speed even as one leapt onto the car and crushed the hood.

"No, no, not my car!" The archaeologist cried out. He stepped into the bus fully and all but glared out the back window. "Oh, I hate mummies," he muttered. Usually this is where I would leap in and start a defensive tirade about my love of Egyptian history, but tonight my whole views on mummies had taken a drastic turn.

"Glad to see me now?" Ardeth asked as the archaeologist turned away from the window.

"Just like old times, huh?" he asked sarcastically as he cocked his shotgun and went to the second story of the bus. I made to follow him but Ardeth threw out a hand to stop me.

"Wait down here. It is safer." I bristled at the statement and glared. I had a lifetime of men underestimating me because I was a woman. "I understand you can shoot, but our weapons are more powerful. If anything gets past us you need to take care of it." He said nothing but the truth and I relented, stepping back to the middle of the bus. There was an unarmed woman and child behind me after all and I could at least be the last line of defense for them.

Above me I heard the sound of a shotgun shooting and saw mummies stumbling or staggering. However it wasn't enough to kill them. They shook off the wound and kept running for us. They suddenly leapt to the buildings beside of us and to my surprise they started scrambling along the wall, using their talon-like fingers to keep a hold of the concrete buildings. I saw dust fall from the back of the bus as the shotgun continued to fire. So the creatures could be killed at least with his weapon, but would mine be enough?

One monster managed to swing into the doorway in front of Ardeth and he fired his automatic weapon into the monster. The bullets pierced the thing in half and it fell out of the doorway. I watched carefully and when nothing came through the door, Ardeth began to reload his weapon. I saw a flicker of movement in the doorway only a split second before him.

"Watch out!"

I fired my pistol as the monster swiped at Ardeth. It was enough to knock it back so the swipe only hit his weapon and not his body. The gun fell to the seat and the creature began to swipe at him with its deadly talons. Though Ardeth he fought it hand to hand, it managed to hit him and throw him against the bus and I heard the woman and child gasp in alarm. I lifted my pistol and fired two rounds, attempting to slow the creature and protect Ardeth. The mummy whipped its head to me and used its handholds on the railings to climb towards me at an alarming pace. Knowing I couldn't move because of the people behind me, I crouched into a fighting position. When it took a swipe at me I ducked and landed a kick to its chest, causing it to fly backwards. It kept its grip on the handrails but it was enough for Ardeth to gain its attention back.

He held a boxing stance and kept fighting the creature, punching when he could and defending himself as much as possible. Finally he scored a good punch and the mummy flew away and into a row of seats. Ardeth stood and panted with exertion. The creature stood, using its hands on the back of the seat to gain traction, then looked at its hand. The fingernails began to grow until they were the size of small knives. It caught both Ardeth and I off guard and the creature swiped at him before I could lift my gun again. He cried out as the creature cut his arm and I heard the woman behind me yell.

"Turn, turn, turn!" the woman cried out to the driver bus swerved violently to the left and everyone fell against the far wall. I slammed my head into the metal frame of the bus and cried out when I felt a blinding pain on my forehead. The bus evened out and I moaned as my world continued to spin.

I saw the mummy get up again and saw him go for Ardeth. Knowing I was pretty much at the end of my time, I lifted my gun and fired the last three rounds into the mummy, buying Ardeth precious time to recuperate. When it turned to me, Ardeth was there in a flurry of punches that turned its attention back to him. Out of bullets and too dazed to help, I could only sit and watch when the creature cut Ardeth on his chest. Ardeth fell as he cried out in pain and lifted his hands helplessly when the mummy came to deliver the final blow.

Fortunately for both of us I wasn't the only woman that could wield a gun. I heard the shotgun and saw the creature fly backwards. With each shot the creature flew back until the final shot that sent it flying through the glass in the back window. Unable to stand at the moment I let my gun fall from my hands.

"Are you all right?" the woman asked Ardeth. I heard his affirmative and lifted myself off of the seats I had fallen on. My world was spinning and though I wished it was from the bus, I knew it was the concussion I probably had. "And you?" she asked.

"Head wound," I pointed to where it hurt the most.

"I don't see any blood," she murmured as she bent over and examined me. "Do you feel dizzy at all? Can you see?"

"Not particularly. Pretty sure I have a concussion."

The driver yelled something and as everyone in the bus turned forward noise exploded around us, a crashing of metal and glass. Immediately Ardeth was on top of both of us, bringing us down and shielding us with his body. When it was quiet again he stood and all but glared at the man driving before flopping back down in the row of seats across from me. He looked entirely exasperated and I managed a small smile at the sight.

"What?" I asked him, curious of his unexpected reaction.

"This was my first bus ride," he replied dryly. I burst out laughing and regretted it instantly when my headache worsened. With a small moan I doubled over and held my now aching head in my hands. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"I will be eventually." True to my word the pounding began to lessen and I lifted my head and blinked a few times to bring everything back into focus.

"Hey, I know you!" the voice was childlike but extremely familiar and I looked to where it came from. I noted the sandy, miskept hair first and then the bright eyes. It took my muddled mind a few seconds but it finally clicked.

"Alex," I murmured in amazement. "Small world after all, kiddo."

"Are you all right, Amber?" he asked, breaking away from the hold his mother had on him to come and inspect my forehead.

"You know her?" the woman asked suspiciously.

"Of course I do!" he replied, rolling his eyes as if the question was ludicrous. "She works at the museum, mum."

"If that's your mother, you must be Evelyn. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, though the circumstances could have been better." Evelyn's mouth quirked into a sardonic smile but I noted that she began to relax upon her son's recognition of me.

"You must be the tour guide Alex talks about," she offered.

"With how much he was asking me questions, I would hope so." I ruffled his hair like I usually did and he immediately threw my hand away, like usual. "And if you're Evelyn, that means the archaeologist must be Rick, your father?"

"You're not wrong." Rick replied. Indeed I wasn't; he was an archaeologist and one that Alex bragged about non-stop when he would go on my tours. I had some of their findings catalogued in the museum as well. Both were famous in my academic circles for their contributions to the field.

With his voice Evelyn turned to him and smiled. Crooking her finger in a way that I clearly understood, she beckoned her husband over as he quirked his eyebrows suggestively at her.

"What would I do without you?" she asked, drawing Alex's attention away from the bump on my head.

"Are all librarians this much trouble?" he quipped back to her, leaning in close to kiss her.

Alex groaned as if he were sick of the show (he was young and I'm sure it was gross to see your parents snogging) and turned away from the pair. "Geez mum, get a room." The muttering continued as he went to the back of the bus. I chuckled and caught Ardeth's gaze. He was still recuperating from his first bus ride but for the most part he seemed to be coherent. However I saw red begin to flow from his side and stain the seat beside him. Belatedly, I remembered the injury on his arm.

"Ardeth, your arm."

He made a noise and raised his arm to look at the wound. Then moved to look at this chest. Another wound, hidden by the black of his robs, was bleeding as well.

"They are not as deep as they look," he replied.

"But they still need to be treated." My mom would be having palpitations with how carelessly he shrugged off his wound. She was a nurse who served her time in a trauma center of the army. Her patients always would try to minimize their wounds or attempt to not be in the hospital longer than usual. She would have a field day with Ardeth. A smile came to my face with the thought of her nagging and-

A muffled scream came from the back of the bus and had all of us whirling to see what the threat was. A hand was over Alex's mouth and yanked him out of the bus.

"ALEX!" Rick cried out, jumping into action. Evelyn was close behind and Ardeth jumped up after the two. As I rose to my feet, I felt the nauseous undertones of what was going to be a nice concussion.

"LET ME GO! LET ME GO!" The boy writhed as he tried to escape but he was thrown into a dark car sitting beside the bus. As the boy was thrown in and the people who kidnapped him jumped into the car, it began to speed off just as Rick landed on the pavement.

"Alex! Alex!" he cried out his son's name and began to run after his son. I stumbled to my feet but the dizziness was worsening by the minute and I could do nothing but look throw the broken back window of the bus after the futile chasing Rick was attempting.

A buzzing hit the air (why did it have to be buzzing?) and I held my head as it kept buzzing and ringing, and it was the most awful sound that could have happened right now. But that sound was dangerous. It meant that the bridge was lifting and the car was close to the middle and would make it to the other side. The car stopped beside the small office used to raise the bridge and picked up one other person. Then it kept driving and made it over the bridge before it became too dangerous.

To his credit Rick kept running even jumping on top of the bridge as it lifted and I could do nothing but fist my hand in frustration. I was useless at the time I needed to be strong. I could not save the little boy who had brightened my days at the museum. I could not stop the ritual and had not seen it coming.

How could I have missed the signs? The whole scenario was completely out of the scope of normalcy, to be fair, but I should have known something was amiss. I did know it. Why had I not acted on it? I had been afraid to lose my job but now looking back, my job was so trivial in the grand scheme of things. One step for me, one giant leap for women, sure, but why had I not brought in others. Why had I not fought? I had stayed on the sidelines, ignorant, and had refused to even bother with what was going on right in front of me.

"It is not your fault." My head whipped up and looked at Ardeth, who stood outside the back of the bus. "You could not have known."

"I knew something was wrong. It was bothering me for a while but I stood back and did nothing."

"If you had tried, perhaps you could have told someone. But they would have found you. Killed you. Do not blame yourself for actions in the past. We should not have involved you anyway." I thought of the paperwork, of my job, and of my life.

"I regret nothing I did today," I finally replied back to the man. His brows lifted in surprise.

"You are different than the women in the city."

"I was raised differently," I allowed. Between a commander for a father and nurse for a mother, they had raised me almost as if I was a man instead of a woman.

"It is good that you were," he complimented. "Without you we may not have made it. I thank you, Amber." My name on his lips was foreign. Exotic. The compliment even more so because he actually meant it. This wasn't lip service; he actually thought I was a help and did not think less of me because I could fight. "Come, let us join the others."

I breathed once to gather my bearings and to fight against the pain, nausea, and dizziness. They were beginning to fade and perhaps I had stood up too fast in my haste to get to Alex. So I followed Ardeth and noticed the bus driver coming behind us. We walked over to Rick and Evelyn, who were in each other's arms consoling the other over the loss of their son. It hurt to see them so; I could almost feel their emotions as a tangible thing.

"Please, do not fear for your son, my friends," Ardeth said, bringing their attention outward. "They cannot hurt him, for he wears the bracelet of Anubis."

Bracelet? What bracelet? The bracelet of Anubis was a myth, a legend a-

Right. Undead mummies, cult leader, book of the dead, not a myth then.

"Are we talking about the bracelet of the Scorpion King? The one that would allow him to command the armies of Anubis and conquer whatever he chose to invade?"

Ardeth nodded at me, confirming my deepest fears.

It was said that the Scorpion King, a mythological Egpytian figure, had sold his soul to the god of death: Anubis. Every five thousand years the Scorpion King would rise and become a threat the world would have to fear. Many had tried to find the resting place of the Scorpion King: Ramsees the fourth, Alexander the Great, Ceaser, Napoleon. All had failed.

"And we have seven days to find Alex and to kill the Scorpion King," Ardeth continued.

"Seven days?" I queried. That number had not been in the ancient texts, nor the time limit for the Scorpion King. I racked my brain for any more information on the bracelet but the Bembridge scholars had not had any more information on the subject.

"Once worn we have seven days before the Scorpion King awakens. On the seventh day he will command the armies of Anubis and conquer the world. The bracelet will take us to the Scorpion King and will show the way for the boy. We must follow his footsteps to the temple of Karnak," Ardeth finished explaining for me. I could feel my heard drop, realizing how serious in trouble we were at the moments and how many tangents of trouble there were.

"Alex is wearing the bracelet?" Evelyn asked worriedly. I could feel her sorrow, her worry. She had not known how much trouble Alex was in nor how much danger he would face alone.

"When he put it on he said he saw the Pyramids of Giza, he saw the temple of Karnak-" Rick started to explain.

"Yes," Ardeth interrupted. "And when they reach Karnak the bracelet will show him the next step of the journey."

"Well if we don't get to Karnak before them, we won't have any idea where to look for him next." Evelyn looked back up at Rick, worried for her son so evident on her features.

"Seems to me, like we need a magic carpet," Rick replied vaguely. "Come on. We need to go."

With my thoughts in chaos, stuck without a ride except for the now half decker bus, and not having enough brain power to plan, I simply followed them for now.

There was simply too much to take in for the moment. Undead mummies. Myths. Legends. I was not cut out for this. For now, I would follow. I would think and I would plan.

It was the only thing I could do.


	2. Take flight

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and favorited this story! I'm glad that people enjoyed it even if I started on the second movie instead of the first.

I hope you guys continue to enjoy! :3

* * *

The ride back to civilization was a quiet affair. Other than ditching the bus for a more suitable cab, there were not many words spoken as we made our way back to their family house. It was fine with me though because I needed a chance to think. I had to compartmentalize the entirety of my academic career in a new light because of more knowledge than I would to care to know again. The changes and allegiances were something I could not have seen coming and this shook the world that I knew and depended on.

Even when we arrived back at their estate, Rick only barked out an order to grab the already packed bags they seemed to have in their estate. Perhaps they had just come back from a dig, or from traveling to another place because even their weapons were loaded and ready to go. In the whirl of chaos Evelyn managed to give me some medicine before she packed that into her bags as well, and I was grateful. This headache and nausea were not helping matters at all.

Finally when the bustle started to calm they noticed my awkward presence in their entrance. It wasn't as if they had forgotten me; they had merely shifted their attentions to other priorities. I needed all the time that I could have and was grateful for the silence I had to think of my next move.

"I wanted to thank you for your help today," Rick finally broke the tense silence to speak with me. I turned to him and saw Evelyn at his side and heard Ardeth walking behind me. The bus driver was beside the couple looking out of sorts and overwhelmed. "You helped save my wife. For that I owe you more than you could ever know."

"I'm glad she was all right," I replied back, smiling at Evelyn. "And I'm glad that I could have been of some assistance to you."

"But this is where we part ways. We need to leave to save our son. And where we are going, you aren't going to like any part of it."

There, that was the crux that had my mind going around in circles. To help them would mean danger and danger meant my life could be ended at any time. I liked my life as it was, properly forging ahead to blaze the trail for others behind me. I was a beacon to those who thought they weren't good enough. A ray to give hope to those who had theirs ripped away. If I left now, I would be leaving all of that behind. My work since I was five years old would mean nothing. I would have to give away my chances of promotion, the chance of any job hiring me, and most importantly give up the dream I had worked so hard to achieve.

"What will you do?" I asked them.

"We will follow our son to the ends of the earth." This time it was Evelyn who spoke vehemently in her rage over her son's kidnapping. "I will find him, I will protect him, and I will do everything I can to bring him back safely in my arms." There was a choked sob at the end, a frustration in her ability to do nothing. Rick pulled her to his side with his arm and kissed the top of her hair in a comforting gesture. The bus driver looked on with pity at the two but said nothing.

Her words struck a chord in me, reminding me of a time in my past where I had heard some of the same sentiment. My own parents and the way I was raised, all of it came back to me in a flash of memories. I had been raised to protect myself in the absence of the one who did not make it. My parents wanted to make sure the tragedy did not happen to them again. Here in front of me where the echoes of the past vibrating to the future; a generation later now laden with the same grief and pain. They could not protect their own, just as mine had not.

My heart beat painfully, reminding myself that I was here alive today and Ryan was not.

But here in this moment looking at the tender gesture that Rick gave Evelyn, this story was not finished yet. In seven days the world could end and their son could be killed. I was torn in my desire to save the world as I knew it, showing that a woman could do so, or to slink back to my home and pretend that I knew nothing of the dangers that awaited the world. Instead I was blindsided by the emotions of the couple in front of me and my personal memories of Ryan. This feeling of dread and sadness, the helplessness of the situation, the reminder of the aching hole left behind in my life, these I did not have a defense for.

"I will go with you." The words tumbled out of my mouth before I had a chance to solidify the choice, but hearing them helped to quell any doubts I had of my next move. My decision was made with those fateful words.

"You will not," Ardeth replied. "You have no business with us and to risk your life for our cause when you are not directly involved is something I cannot allow."

"You're wrong." Those dark eyes widened in surprise that I would contradict him so readily. "In seven days I could die if you fail. My life will be given away to a conqueror that will destroy the world. So instead of waiting for the danger to come to me, I will fight against it instead."

"You might perish during the journey," Ardeth warned.

"If I die, I die knowing that a woman dared to stand up to an undead mummy. I die knowing that I fought against those who would threaten not only my life and the lives of my family, but of those all over the world. If I die, I will carve my name out in history as one who had the courage and would to not give up when hope seemed lost. If even just my name survives in textbooks, I hope that it will one day lead others to change. To show that a woman can do the same as a man and maybe inspire others to fight against the society that chains us."

Ardeth held up my hand, stopping my increasingly passionate speech. Knowing I was going off tangent I took a breath and released it instead.

"And that is not all. I want to save your son." This time I turned back to the couple who gave me their complete attention. "Alex was the light of my time at the museum. He was always around smiling and asking questions. I don't know if I could go back to work and not have him visit me every day. I could not bear watching more parents lose another son." Too late I realized what I had revealed to the couple. Rick looked as if he was going to ask me of the tidbit of information, but his wife placed a hand on his arm and he did not ask. Thankfully.

"You cannot go with us," Ardeth stated.

"If I cannot go with you, I will go alone. I have the skills to survive. Maybe not all skills, but I have enough and will find a way to follow you and to help in any way I can. Whether that is with you or behind you, I will be there."

Perhaps it was the way my body stood proudly or the inflection of truth in my tone. Maybe it was the words of my speech that tipped them off to the vast levels of stubbornness I possessed. The couple looked at Ardeth and he back at them in a silent conversation concerning my fate. Rick was the first to look back at me.

"Are you sure about this?"

"I do not regret any of my choices." The words echoed those of before and Ardeth caught on to my deliberate use of phrase. With a wry smile he inclined his head to me, acknowledging my choice.

"Then you are welcome to come with us."

"Do I have time to gather my things to come with you?" I asked the group. Rick shook his head adamantly. I honestly expected this and simply nodded in response.

"I have things that could fit you and my clothes are already packed. It is the least I could do to give you some of my things for the journey ahead," Evelyn stated.

"Thank you, Evelyn."

"If we are going to travel together, please call me Evie." The smile was genuine and I smiled back in response.

"And I'm Jonathon, an absolute pleasure," the bus driver stated, holding his hand out for me to shake. I did so as he grinned goofily, and was he really flirting with me right now?

"Then please, the car is ready. Let us leave and get back to Egypt," Ardeth stated, gesturing to the outside. I turned away from Jonathon and allowed myself to cut short that conversation.

We all followed and gathered into another car of the O'Connell's. It was sleek and looked as if it was a new purchase. I was surprised at the luxury of the car when I slid into the backseat with Ardeth and Jonathon, and actually took a chance to look back at the house as we sped away. It was pricy and definitely for the top echelon of wealth. The O'Connell's must have been wealthier than I had ever expected and I had expected a lot.

"What are you looking at?" Ardeth asked. I turned away from the home fading in the distance and looked at the man again. He was sitting in the middle seat with Jonathon crammed in beside him, and he was entirely too close for comfort. I could feel his side pressed into mine because of the cramped space and tried to ignore the closeness as best as I could possibly do.

Now that things were calm (to an extent) and I had medicine in me I could finally appreciate who I was sitting beside. It was odd but the darkness did nothing to take away from his features, it almost sculpted the shadows in a way that they were almost meant to be there. He almost belonged with a night in a way that no other I had ever met could be. It suited him, these planes and shadows in the darkness of the moonless night.

"Home I suppose," I finally answered him. "And before you ask, I regret nothing." The flash of white teeth as he smiled had my gaze flicking toward his mouth. A handsome smile in the dead of night.

"I was not going to. I am convinced you were going to follow us regardless. It is good that you will travel with us instead." Was the car confining or was it the man beside me that made it seem so? His presence could fill the air around me and I could not focus on anything but him. The streetlights would highlight his face then cast it back into shadow as they past. His exotic features appearing and disappearing from view, much like a tiger hiding in the jungle.

I shook my head at the terrible analogy, but he reminded me of something that would stalk its prey. To watch and wait until the right moment to strike. This man was not normal and he was in a sense dangerous. I felt it from him but still I could not look away.

"I will do all that I can to help you in any way possible." What words I could speak almost fell against the aura he exuded.

"And what can you do to help us?" He saw me bristle as I reacted to the attack on my gender and he held up a hand. "You have already helped us, Amber. I did not mean disrespect." Funny how that line of disrespect kept cropping up in conversations of my everyday life. Perhaps I was a bit touchy with certain things.

"I'm sorry. It's almost instinct." He smiled at me and it made my heart flutter. This man was absolutely leathal. "I know my way around firearms. I mostly carry my colt pistol but I can shoot rifles and have been trained in marksmanship. I can read and speak ancient Egyptian fluently and am well trained in Egypt antiquities. I also know hand to hand combat for self-defense. Though, I have not used my training before or killed anyone. Until today." I remembered the man crumpling as I shot him and I shelved the memory again. I would forget as long as I could until I was in a position to handle the emotions and trauma that would come with my first kill.

"I say, you can really do all those things?" Jonathon asked. I opened my mouth to correct his assumptions about my abilities and was interrupted before my tirade could start.

"You should like a general," Rick quipped, causing me to laugh and turn away from Jonathon. Thankfully the turn of conversation would keep the other memories from coming back to me.

"It seems like I have too much of my father in me," I admitted with a chuckle. "He was military. A commander. And you sound like you know the military as well, Rick."

"Takes one to know one," he genially replied. With a snort at his demeanor I realized he must have served in some capacity. It made things easier because I could relate to the military culture. Then again this sarcastic man in front of me was almost the complete opposite of my father in terms of sass and speech. It was almost, well, cute in a way. And highly amusing.

"Do you know how to fight with a sword?" Ardeth asked. I shook my head at him.

"No unfortunately that was left out of the curriculum." At my humor I was granted another smile and my heart beat loudly in my chest. Again. If this man's smile could influence my heartbeat to such a degree he should have been jailed. Or at least forced to cover that smile because honestly the whole deal should have been highly illegal. Perhaps I should write to my lawmakers when I got back to make the laws official. "I can fight with a knife but that is the extent it."

"If there is time, perhaps I will be able to teach you how to fight with a sword." Had his voice always been so low and husky? His gruff voice reverberated inside my head in a way that I had not felt before and I had to fight a shiver.

"I'll look forward to it," I managed to reply. In truth it would be good to have all the training I could in the upcoming days. Yet the real reason was more mundane. A man was offering to teach me combat. He was accepting of the fact that I could defend myself and even praised me for it. This was a novel experience that had never happened to me before and I found myself relishing in the acceptance of the exotic man.

There was that illegal smile again, piercing the darkness and making my heart do odd things in my chest. Damn the man.

With that I looked away from the one who seemed to devour all of my attention span and looked forward. We were close to the airfield and would soon be leaving the only country I had ever known.

"This might be the time to mention I do not have identification papers on me right now." Rick snorted.

"You have your museum identification?" Evie asked.

"Yes, in my purse."

"We can use those papers instead." Which was all great but I was working myself up to the next confession.

"And while we are on the subject of planes, I wanted to let you know this was my first time." And I was nervous.

"Oh, they are quite fun!" Evie replied with a smile. "In the air with nothing more than engines and two wings? They are an amazing achievement of what man is capable of doing." And that explanation did nothing to help ease the anxiousness of my first flight. I made a small noise that fell something in the sense of a sarcastic laugh before looking out the window, causing Rick and Ardeth to chuckle.

"These planes are safe," Ardeth replied. "Even I have flown on such a contraption." I did not like 'safe'. I liked my feet on the ground, in a way that I could have control over myself. Planes took that away from me and I had always avoided them before.

"You gonna chicken out on us?" Rick asked jovially, almost too much so. My eyes narrowed at the back of his head.

"No," I shot back sulkily.

"Good then we'll just get on the plane with minimal fuss and be done with it." If I could slump any lower in the seat I might have ended up on the floorboards. But when the car filled with laughter I reluctantly smiled anyway. They needed a few moments of levity in their time.

* * *

Once the engines to the plane were shut off and stopped rotating, I was the first out of the plane and jumping to the ground of Egypt. The plane was a harrowing experience and though I appreciated the rare treat of being in an airplane I did not want a repeat experience for a long while yet.

"You see?" Ardeth asked as he leapt to the ground beside me. "It was not so horrible."

"I live in Egypt now," I shot back dryly. "This is my new home." With an enigmatic smile he turned away from me, leaving me in typical confusion. He was as enigmatic as ever and that smile held so much hidden secrets and knowledge. Even so, the man looked so at home with the sand around him. Remembering how he looked in the bus and in the car, it made me truly realize this man's home was here and he could be in no other place and no other era.

"Amber, help unpack the plane. I'm going to get the car for us." I nodded absently at Rick and went to do what he bade. As the pilot went to hand the luggage down to me he hesitated, but this time I kept myself in check. I was happy to be out of the plane and the heat was distracting me from my usual anger. I merely gestured at the guy again and he began to hand down the load to me.

As I worked up a sweat I realized these clothes were much too think for the arid desert around us. The pants were thicker than I should have worn here and the blouse, though comfortable, was made of satin and sticking to all parts of my skin. It was uncomfortable.

Once we finished the unloading Evie took pity on me and helped me inside the small building of the airfield to help me get changed. Now armed with a much lighter set of long sleeved shirts and pants, the air didn't feel as oppressive anymore. I had always liked the heat and hated the dreary clouds of England that always seemed to be present so I was not dissatisfied with the weather here.

Not long after I had gotten changed Rick came around with an open top car. As I started to pack up the car, Ardeth came around on the back of a horse, flanked by another dressed in the same style of black garmet.

"I will meet up with you later, my friends. For now I must set in motion things on my end."

There was a ridiculous urge to stop him from leaving that sprang deep from inside me. It was almost instinctive to demand him to stay by my side and quite frankly that was ridiculous. I didn't need a man to protect me and I certainly did not want to depend on one, but this man was invoking such strange reactions out of me. I did not know what to do.

"We will meet you later, then." Rick did not say where he was going nor did Ardeth ask. Instead we all filed into the car and again I was in the backseat. This time I was alone with Evie and as we pulled away I could not help myself from looking back behind me once more. Ardeth was watching us leave and I turned away with a blush on my face from being caught. Drat the man for making me think of him. Beside me Evie smiled and looked forward, wisely saying nothing of what she had witnessed.

As we finally dove through the "street" of sand we arrived at a broken down gate of something called Magic Carpet Airways. The words of needing a magic carpet echoed through my mind as Rick stopped the car, causing me to laugh and shake my head as we exited the vehicle.

"This is the magic carpet?" Evie asked and I chuckled at how alike we thought.

"It's fine. He's a professional," Rick soothed as we collectively started walking to the door. Coincidentally as we began walking toward the door and it opened to…quite a character.

He was a black man dressed in what seemed to be a rag tag bunch of styles of clothes all bundled together, with an aviator hood and googles that were entirely too dirty to be seen out of. He had a small beard on his sandy face and an eyepatch covered his left eye. He stopped point blank as he saw us in front of him.

"Izzy!" Rick cried out happily, holding out his hands as if to hug him. The man jumped as if visibly spooked and made a terrified noise. Confused I looked towards Rick as the man ran back to the door and with one final look he slammed it behind him and locked the key. Rick now stared at the door dumbfounded at the reaction with an indignant, "Hey!" at the display. I snorted at that reaction from him.

"He definitely remembers you," Evie quipped at her husband, who looked back and gave her an unimpressed look. Honestly I was envious of the byplay between the two; it spoke of their love for one another and I wished I could have a relationship like theirs one day.

"He's a little shy," Rick replied dryly.

"Jonathon, get our bags," Rick commanded. The man walked up to Rick with a golden rod and waved it around in front of him.

"Oh, my hands are full."

"Now," Rick commanded as he yanked the golden rod away from Jonathon.

"Right, I'll just go get the bags." And indeed he did, turning around to start unloading the vehicle.

"I'll deal with the flight details," Rick stated as he reached for his gun.

"Um, wait, Rick," I spoke up, not wanting violence in any situation. Evie simply laid a hand on my arm and I quieted down to watch instead. Rick shot at the lock and it fell down and hung by a small strip of metal.

"Honey, you're not a subtle man," Evie informed him with a sigh of acceptance.

"We don't have time for subtle," he replied easily with a shrug. He then proceeded to kick the door open and the frantic, horrified man inside made to run away again.

"Izzy, come here." The man waddled away to his…office space, that consisted of only a desk with no walls or ceiling, and basically was just a few pieces of furniture set up in the ruins of once used to be a building.

"He doesn't look happy to see you," Evie informed him as the man made those scared noises in his haste to get away from us.

"Never turned me down yet," Rick told her as we made our way to Izzy's side.

"Whatever it is, whatever you need, I don't care," Izzy stated as he went do his desk with a sleeping man on it. "Forget it O'Connell." He began to grab rolls of paper and stuff them into his hands. "Every time I hook up with you, I get shot." My eyebrows rose at the insinuation and I looked back to the not so impressed Rick. "Last time I got shot in the ass." My eyebrows rose higher as I made a mental note to ask Rick the details of this story later. "I'm in mourning for my ass!" Izzy moaned out and I had to swallow a smile. This man was a character all right and I could feel that he would be amusing in the future, if Rick could convince him to get past his…fear of being shot. "Remember that bank job in Marrakesh?"

"Bank job?" I could hear the suspicion in Evie's voice as she looked at her husband.

"It's not like it sounds."

Izzy grabbed another paper and looked back up at Rick. "Uh, it's exactly how it sounds. I'm flying high, _hiding_ in the sun," he glared at Rick again as he stressed hiding. "This white boy here flags me down, so I fly in low for the pickup. The next thing you know I get shot. I'm lying in the middle of the road with my spleen hanging out and I see him waltzing up with some belly dancer girl." Rick tried to stop Izzy before the damning evidence was spoken but by that time it was too late.

"Belly dancer girl?" Rick turned back to his wife, all smiles, trying to distract her from the bellydancing girl comment. "Izzy, I think you and I should talk."

"As long as I don't get shot," he replied snarkily, looking Rick up and down. I couldn't hold back a snort of laughter and I attempted to look as innocent as possible. Instead it earned me a glare from Izzy himself.

"Quit your whining. You're gonna get paid this time." Rick threw a stack of money at Izzy, probably more than I'd seen in one roll of bills in my life, and the eccentric man caught it. Izzy glanced at the money as if it tempted him for a moment then rolled his eyes.

"O'Connell, you looked around here any? Eh? What do I need money for? What the hell am I gonna spend it on?"

Patience finally done with the entire situation, Rick took a step forward to Izzy as he conspicuously pocketed the money. "I'm gonna keep this short," Rick started, his voice low and dangerous. He lifted the golden rod and began to use it as a prop to accentuate what he was saying. "My little boy is out there. I'm going to do whatever it takes to get him back." As he pointed Izzy followed the golden rod like a man starved. Finally catching on Rick looked to the rod then back at Izzy. He moved the rod and Izzy made greedy noises in the back of his throat.

"O'Connell, you give me that gold stick there and you can shave my head, wax my legs and use me as a surfboard." Immediately Rick handed Izzy the golden rod and Izzy dropped his papers to greedily grasp the treasure in his hands.

"Didn't we do that in Tripoli?" Izzy smiled shyly and looked back to the gold stick.

"Now this is a story I need to hear," I spoke up. This was too much information for me not to be curious and if the bellydancer girl was any indication the story must have been another wild ride.

"Maybe later," I heard from Rick. I chuckled and left well enough alone. "By the way, when did you, lose your eye?"

"Oh," Izzy began with a laugh. "I didn't. I just thought it made me more dashing." With a laugh he showed Rick his eye and I was struck by the similarities of Jonathon and this man. Perhaps that was why Rick was dealing with them the same way. Rick ripped the eyepatch off of Izzy and threw it onto the ground.

"Come on. Get to work."

As Izzy gave the orders to prepare Rick began to walk back to his car and Izzy followed, walking between Evie and I.

"You're not exactly catching me at my best."

"Oh, I sure I am," Evie replied. Seriously Izzy and Jonathon should have been brothers, since they flirted the same way anyway. Both crashed and burn before the race even began.

As we rounded the corner a horse whinny filled the air and I spotted 13 men on horseback. All wore the same black robes as Ardeth so they must have been affiliated with the man in the middle of them. Ardeth hopped off of his horse with a familiarity that made me jealous. I had ridden before and this man looked as if he was born on the back of one. Did he have to be good at everything he did?

"I knew it," I heard from behind me. "I'm gonna get shot." I rolled my eyes at the one track mind of Izzy but followed the group to where they stood in front of the men in black.

"These are the commanders of the twelve tribes of the Medjai." The Medjai, I hadn't heard of this group before. I would have to ask Ardeth later what they were. "Horus!" He lifted his hand and a bird flew from the hand of one of the commanders and landed on Ardeth's hand instead.

"Ah, a pet bird."

"My best and most clever friend," Ardeth admonished. Dually noted, do not call the bird a pet. "He will let the commanders know of our progress so that they may follow." He turned back to the commanders and lifted his hand into the air. "Allahu Ma'ana." I didn't recognize the phrase, only that it was Arabic. He then touched his chest as the commanders mirrored his actions. Then they turned and rode off, most likely to gather their forces for the journey ahead. "If the army of Anubis arises they will do all they can to stop it."

Rick nodded and inclined his head back to the Magic Carpet Airways building. So again we turned and went back as Jonathon left to go to the car for the rest of the suitcases. I felt bad for him so I went to follow. This time Rick and Evie joined us and began to help Jonathon carry the bags. Ardeth stood by with his bird as we got our items together. Finally as we cleared the car and headed back inside, Evie finally voiced her concerns.

"Are you sure he's reliable?"

"Yeah, yeah he's reliable. Ish."

"That last part doesn't inspire my confidence," I primly informed Rick. He shrugged.

"Eh." I snorted again at the man but decided to follow regardless. Rick would find the best way to chase down his son, and if it was through Izzy, I would trust his judgement as well. Even if he did not make me feel as confident as I wished.

We rounded the next corner and I stopped dead in my tracks at the sight before me. A balloon floated in front of me and seemed to be big enough to carry people on. A small boat hung underneath the what seemed to be hand stitched balloon and was held together with ropes. The wood seemed to be old and rotting at first glance and I almost turned to walk away right there.

"Come," Ardeth pulled me along and galvanized me into action. I did not want to think of why my skin was tingling from where he had grasped my shirt. His fingers hadn't even touched my skin and it was reacting already. With a huff I followed the crew instead.

"Isn't she beautiful?" Izzy asked as we finally made our way the balloon contraption.

"It's a balloon!" was Rick's incredulous reply.

"Ugh, it's a dirigible."

"Where's your airplane?"

"Hah! Airplanes are a thing of the past."

"Izzy, you were right," Rick agreed and he came to a stop in front of the man.

"I was?"

"Yeah, you're gonna get shot." With a quick, fluid motion Rick grabbed the gun and cocked it, then swung the gun up to point at Izzy.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, she's faster than she looks." At this point I did not know who to fear more, the fact that Rick pulled a gun on Izzy or the fact that Izzy didn't seem to care or sense the danger he was in. "And she's quiet. Real quiet. Perfect for sneaking up on people which is a very good thing." Izzy walked up to Rick as he was speaking and his voice dropped to an almost whisper. "Unless, of course, we go with your approach. Barging in face first, guns blazing, and getting your friend shot in the ass!"

"Funny, I think I might have heard that story before," I said out loud as Rick shrugged his agreement and put away his weapon.

"And if you think that is the only thing that he's responsible for, then you'd be wrong!" He turned back to the ship, leaving me with no doubt he'd hidden a scroll somewhere with every instance of Rick wronging him. Most likely as a ledger, or perhaps a hate list contrived after being shot in the ass.

"Why can't you people ever keep your feet on the ground?" Ardeth asked. I smiled.

"Says the man who said airplanes were safe," I shot back at him. He turned towards me with an amused smile.

"Just because they are safe does not mean I wish to ride in one unless the need is dire." I grinned at him, relaxing my guards for the first time around him.

"And yet here you are with so much flying you might forget what it is like being on the ground."

"But I am not the only one about to fly in that balloon." I groaned.

"Don't remind me." His laugh was infectious, I found out. He laughed loudly with no care to anyone who heard his amusement. Even Evie had turned in surprise at the sound and glanced at me, then back to him. With a smile she turned back to her husband and left us to her own devices. "If I fall out of it, at least I tried to warn us beforehand."

"If you fall, I will catch you." It had to have been the heat of the desert that pressed upon me with those words. I could feel the blush darkening my cheeks to a rosy hue and my usually witty brain had nothing it could say in return. Ardeth smiled at my silence and walked away toward the balloon, leaving me behind with a rapidly beating pulse and a brain that could not even function.

Maybe I should petition for him as a whole to be declared illegal.

Finally as my feet managed to work before my brain, I managed to make it to the balloon and throw all of the luggage I was carrying into the "dirigible". I vaulted myself into the ship and was surprised to not hear the groaning of wood with the new weight. Even if it did not look new, it seemed to be holding up fairly well. After finishing the preparations I came to the side of the ship and could not help but to hold on to the railings until my knuckles turned white. I was scared with an airplane but at least I knew those were proven to be safe enough. A balloon with hot air holding a ship with ropes? Not so much.

"It will be all right." I heard Ardeth come beside me, his arm devoid of the bird.

"Everything's just fine," I managed to say between clenched teeth. If I wasn't so terrified perhaps I could have marveled over the fact that I was going on an air balloon and maybe in the retelling of the story would I be able to remember this fondly. For now my nerves of not being on the ground were in full swing.

To my ultimate surprise Ardeth placed a hand on one of my own and stood beside me. My hand tingled from the first touch of his skin to my own. I could do nothing but stare at the contact and felt my heart beat faster in my chest, the reaction that always seemed to happen when Ardeth was concerned.

"Relax."

"If I remember you weren't happy about this either."

"Of course not. But I told you I would catch if you fell." I let out a short, nervous laugh but he did not move and I felt my grip start to loosen under the weight of his hand. Instinctively I was reacting to his protection, knowing that he was capable of the promises he gave. He was of a different material than the men in the city and somehow I knew that from the first moment I met him.

"Cut the ropes!" I heard Izzy command, and Rick took a quick moment to do as he bade. The ship shook and again my grip tightened to an almost painful extent. The balloon turned and my balanced was disrupted over the angle of the turn, causing me to step instinctively to correct myself.

Immediately Ardeth took a step forward and caught me before I could fall over or worse. His hand held my waist as he pulled me to his side to steady me. "I can handle it," I told him immediately, feeling as if I had to defend myself.

"I know," was his reply. Perhaps he did know. "I merely wanted to assist you, even if you did not truly need it from me." Placation was something else he was good at, apparently, because I did not have another answer to that.

For the first time in my life, I found myself relaxing into the touch of a man. What was it about this man that he could go past my guards and burrow straight into my being? I looked up Ardeth to see him looking down at me. Whatever this man was, he was my weakness. I was attracted to him, and that scared me most of all.


	3. Dreams and visions

As we flew through the air, the longer I was exposed to this ride of sorts, the more relaxed I was becoming. It wasn't the worst thing I had done and when the nerves were gone it was a decent sort of transportation. The arid wind felt nice against my face as we flew and the view from above the sand dunes was nothing short of beautiful. Things looked so different in the air than from the ground.

Eventually I had found my way to a seat and kept sneaking glances at the new bird companion we had picked up. He seemed to be a relaxed bird, not making too many noises nor needing constant attention. The only other birds I had seen were tropical ones that were pretty colors and pets, not a companion like Horus seemed to be. He would watch me as I watched him but he made no move other than to occasionally clean his feathers or stretch his wings.

"Have you seen a bird of prey before?" The question startled me from my bird watching and I guiltily looked to Ardeth, who had taken the seat beside of the bird.

"Not up close and not in person. He's beautiful." Indeed I was not frightened of the bird as others may have been. He really was a glorious creature.

"That he is." Ardeth put his glove back on his hand and Horus immediately came onto his perch, quickly vacating the seat he was tied to. "Would you like to touch him?"

"Oh, may I?" I couldn't deny it was what I really wanted after watching Ardeth do the same to Horus earlier. Or have him do to me, but that was highly inappropriate and not the time to be thinking or entertaining those kinds of thoughts.

He came to sit beside of me on the edge of the ship and held out his hand with Horus on it.

"Touch his chest, here. Like this." He showed me the way to do it. "Stroke him gently, with the back of your fingers down the features like this. Never against the feathers."

"Right." I lifted my hand cautiously and the bird turned to look at me. I hesitated in touching him but Ardeth chuckled and guided my hand to the bird's chest.

"He's so soft," I marveled. The feathers were softer than almost anything I'd felt before. My hand slid down the feathers effortlessly and I lifted my hand again to stroke the bird. To his credit Horus seemed to not mind the gentle touch and I couldn't help the broad grin that stretched across my face.

"Thank you," I told Ardeth, turning that smile to him. "This is wonderful. Thank you." His dark eyes watched me with a look that I did not know and I stilled halfway down the bird's chest. There was that aura again, filling up the space around me as if I could not breathe. I could not look away from him; I was drawn to that enigmatic look that I could not place.

"You are most welcome." With that I could breathe again and once more I smiled at him as I continued to stroke the bird of prey.

"Did you raise Horus yourself?"

"Yes. He comes in handy when we need to send messages to one another. Most commanders have a bird like him for just that reason."

"That would be useful to have." Since Ardeth was being so open, I could not help but think of him and how his life was. He interested me and now that I had accepted the fact I had an unhealthy attraction to him, I wanted to learn more. "Can I ask you another question?"

"As many as you would like," he replied easily. I don't know why I wanted to blush but I tried to fight down the reaction.

"What exactly is a Medjai?" I asked as I finally stopped petting Horus. Instead he took up the action as he looked at me.

"We are a tribe dedicated to stop the rise of Imhotep. For thousands of years we have watched over Hamunaptra to prevent it from happening. Unfortunately we failed in our mission." I nodded once.

"And who is Imhotep?" Ardeth blinked as if he did not understand why I would ask, then realized why.

"He is the undead mummy we are chasing. He was a high priest of Pharaoh Seti the first and was in love with the pharoah's wife, Anck-Su-Namun." I knew of Seti and knew of the wife. But the rest I had not known. I wanted to interrupt, to tell him he was wrong, but I was quickly learning that it was I who did not have the story.

"So when Seti was killed, it was not an unknown assassin," I prompted.

"Yes. It was Imhotept and Anck-Su-Namun. They were caught in their affair and killed Seti to hide it. In the end Anck-Su-Namun killed herself rather than give herself to the guards. Imhotep was suffered to become the first to endure Hom-Dai."

"But it's-" I took a breath. "I'm sorry, I always want to argue but I do understand that you're right. It's hard going against the knowledge I thought was right all of these years."

"It is expected. Do you know of the Hom-Dai?"

"If I remember correctly it was something given only to the most vile, the ones who needed the punishment above all others. The ancient Egyptians feared the Hom-Dai because if they rose…" I trailed off in realization. "He would come as a powerful god and set in motion the ten plagues of Egypt."

"You are correct. And he did. Because of our failure he walked the world once more."

"How…how did you fail?" With a small smirk he looked toward the front of the ship.

"It was actually Rick and Evelyn who awakened Imhotep. But with their help we managed to defeat him once again and put the creature back into his grave." Really? Rick and Evie had been the ones to unleash him? "They rose the creature unknowingly." Ardeth looked back to me, guessing my thoughts before they even had the ability to materialize. "But now he was risen by a cult with a singular mind in taking over the world."

"Led by the curator." _That I did not stop_ echoed in my mind again and I closed my eyes against the familiar guilt.

"It is still no more your fault than it was before," Ardeth spoke seriously.

"Stop reading my mind," I sniped back at him as I opened my eyes once more, making him chuckle.

"Then stop being so easy to read." I laughed wryly at the situation, because he was right. I was not the best at hiding my emotions.

"I'll have to work on that. May I?" I asked, gesturing to the bird once again.

"Please." Ardeth dropped his hand and let me pet Horus again. Once again the smile came across my face.

"Now that I've touched him I never want to stop," I admitted with a giggle. "He's so beautiful."

"Then you may touch him as much as you want."

"Careful, Ardeth, those kinds of promises could be dangerous." I did not realize how my words could be taken until I turned back to look at Ardeth with a teasing smile. His eyes were dark now, near smoldering and belatedly I realized my error. This intensity was making my heart beat loudly in my chest again and I became acutely aware of the fact there was such small space between us.

"Amber!" I was yanked away from the spell by Rick, who gestured to me. "Look, it's the Pyramids of Giza."

Excitedly I bounded to my feet, forcing myself to forget the previous interaction and gasped in amazement. If the sand dunes had been beautiful before, seeing the pyramids at sunset on a floating airship was the greatest experience of my life.

"This is….they are…" I could feel tears building at the emotions my words could not express. It was awe, beauty, and the realization I was here seeing this with my own two eyes. I darted around the ship as we passed between them, not able to get enough views of the experience. I turned back to all of them, tears running down my face. "I never want to leave." It was the only thing I could say. These things that I had studied for so long were now here before my eyes. I never thought I would have the time or the money to come to Egypt to see these wonders and now here I was.

"Oh, stop it, it's just a pyramid," Evie teased and she came to me and wiped the tears from my face with her sleeve. After my face was dry she held my face and smiled a knowing smile. Once before she had been new to this and had felt the things I was feeling. She understood. "It's magnificent, isn't it?" I turned back to the pyramids to see them again. The setting sun framed them in a warm, orange glow that made them come to life before me. Time stood still here as these magnificent structures withstood the ages to remain a beautiful testament to the wonders of the ancient worlds.

"It's the most beautiful thing I have ever seen," I agreed softly.

* * *

Later that night I was stargazing off the side of the ship, trying to recall the constellations that I hadn't forgotten. It had been a while since I had the chance to see such a brightly lit sky and I fancied the time to watch and remember again. In London there was so much lost even in the sky itself. The lights hid most of the beauty whereas here, it was enhanced and raw. The whip of stars even streaked across the sky showing the Milky Way spiral, a view that you could not even hope to see in London.

"O'Connell does not want to believe," Ardeth spoke, breaking the silence of the ship. I turned to see Rick headed toward the front of the boat with a drink in his hand, and Ardeth near the back of the boat with Horus on his wrist again. "He flies like Horus to his destiny." Rick ignored the barb and went to be with his wife on the bow of the ship.

"Yes, yes, very interesting." Jonathon muttered in agreement, clearly eager to change the subject. I smiled and turned to the pair to see what shenanigans he was up to now. "Tell me more about this gold pyramid."

"I had no idea you were so interested in pyramids, Jonathon," I teased.

"I like to expand my knowledge about, you know, what we are getting into. I'm making sure I'm ready for anything." I laughed outright at the man and shifted closer to the pair.

"Well, it is written that since the time of the Scorpion King no man who has laid eyes upon it has ever returned to tell the tale." Ardeth stroked Horus as he explained to Jonathon, who sighed in exasperation.

"I'm glad we are preparing then," I teased, not letting the earlier comment pass by.

"Where is all this stuff written?"

"Everywhere you do not read, apparently." My teasing was ignored by Jonathon, who reached into a hole in the steering box with a drawled out 'hello'.

"Got it." He pulled out the golden rod that Rick had traded Izzy for his flight and sighed in relief. "Pretty nice, eh? This is all I have left in the world. The rest of my fortune was lost to some rather unscrupulous characters, actually." I believe the term my dad had for stories like this that was succinct and to the point: bullshit. Jonathon spewed it like a plague of locusts, but it was more amusing than anything else once you realized to take everything he said with a grain of salt.

"Well if the curator reacted to it the way you say, it must be very important."

"What do you mean, reacted to it?" I asked. This golden rod was important to him?

"He grabbed it from me like he recognized it or something. Said he couldn't believe it."

"May I see it?" Jonathon hesitated. "I will give it back, I promise." With obvious reluctance he handed over the artifact to me and I took it gingerly, with the care that I always used with any artifact that came through my doors. "It has the mark of Osiris. Here. The symbol of Djed. And here, the Bennu bird."

"I do not understand what they would want with an artifact of Osiris." Ardeth mused.

"I'm not sure either. Thank you." I gave the artifact back to Jonathon.

"Whatever it is, it sounds important. If I were you I'd keep it close."

Jonathon laughed in confidence. "My friends the gods couldn't take this away from me." With that Izzy reached down and grabbed the rod from Jonathon. The two struggled with their grip as they barked at one another.

"Hey, that's mine!"

"No it's not!" Jonathon grunted back. With a few more tugs Izzy had the final pull and took the rod back into his possession.

"Keep your hands off it."

Ardeth and chuckled and I laughed outright at Jonathon's misfortune. Izzy went back to his maps with one more scowl at Jonathon, who muttered darkly under his breath.

"Ardeth, I miss Horus. Let me pet him."

"It has only been a few hours," he teased.

"And what a long few hours it has been." Even as he teased he stretched out his hand to give me better access to the bird's chest and I started to pet him with a smile.

"You really love that bird, don't you?" Jonathon asked.

"Of course I do. He's a lovely bird and I've never seen a peregrine falcon so well behaved." I stroke him with the back of my knuckles and the smile never truly left my face.

"He likes you as well."

"Good. Because after this is over, I want visiting rights to see the most beautiful bird in Egypt." The words were almost too easy for me to say. Thinking that everything would be fine and I would make it out alive. Thinking that I would be allowed to visit Horus after this was over. Thinking that I would be able to remain in Egypt.

"It could be arranged." The tone had me freezing for a moment then continuing to stroke the bird. Ardeth was pleased; overly so for it to come into his usual voice.

"Oh god, you two, do not start flirting in front of me." I could not help the blush on my cheeks but I could at least deflect the accusation back to him.

"I would bet anything I own that you flirt more than me, and you would pick up any girl who would show you interest."

"I would never!" I laughed because I hit the nail on the head and he sounded so scandalized it must have been true.

"And unlike you, I have standards. I at least go for cute birds that are smart enough to lead armies and patient enough to let me pet him all that I want." Almost as if he understood me, Horus lifted his head haughtily and ruffled his feathers.

"Ugh." Jonathon was done with me at that point. Instead he looked toward the front of the ship, where Evie and Rick were holding each other tightly.

They were so close and holding each other so tightly that they must have been thinking about their missing son. I wished I could make their pain go away.

"Once we find Alex, it will." I jumped, startled, unaware that I had spoken the last bit aloud. Ardeth clasped my hand in mid stroke and pulled it away from Horus, holding my fingers lightly in his grip. "Do not worry about things for now. Focus on the journey ahead and what we will accomplish." I nodded to him and squeezed his hand in acceptance. Perhaps I held his hand longer than customarily usual but I had not thought of how his callused hand would feel against my own. I didn't want to let it go.

"I don't want Alex to be hurt," I admitted. "Your family shouldn't know that pain." Even oblivious Jonathon had a pained look on his face, guessing at what my words meant.

"Did you-" He started to ask.

"I'm sorry. The pain is too much for me right now. I can't talk about it yet." To help ease the sting of cutting him off rudely I smiled in his direction. "Maybe one day I'll be able to talk about it. But seeing them, it brings it all back to me."

Unexpectedly my hand was covered with another hand and I looked to see Ardeth had put the bird down on the chair beside of him. He gently covered my hands with his own in a gentle hold and I did not want to pull away.

"It is this pain that makes you strong. Without it you would not be the person you are today." It was true; without Ryan's death I wouldn't have been taught how to fight or shoot. It took me down a path that I would never go down unless it had been extraordinary coincidences. I did not regret who I am and what I became from it, but many things in my life I gave up to be this way.

"I suppose so. But they are already good people. They don't need the pain to make them into something great."

"No. We will save the boy. You can't worry yourself over something you do not have control over. We will get the chance to save him and you will be there to help."

Tentatively I put my hand on top of Ardeth's and blushed when he turned his hand over so that he was holding both of my hands. This action was almost too much for me to bear but I kept my hands were they were.

"You know, Amber," I looked up to Jonathon, who was uncomfortable in this whole situation. "You're stronger than me anyway. With someone like you around I bet Alex is going to be fine." It wasn't the most poetic words, but it was the content behind them.

A man had said I was strong. He had placed faith in me to physically protect someone dear to him. No one had ever had that amount of faith in me before or in my capabilities. I had proved that I could be there in the time of need and he had noticed, and accepted; even if it was shenanigan Jonathon.

"That's one of the nicest things someone has ever said to me before," I told him softly with a genuine smile. "Thank you for believing in me."

"Good. Now that that's out of the way, I'm leaving so you two can flirt in peace." Now my face was burning and I couldn't stand it, and pulled my hands away from Ardeth. He smiled at my action but said nothing else and picked up Horus. Jonathon, true to his word, did in fact leave us to sit in the middle of the ship, dramatically rolling his eyes with a huff of disgust. I was embarrassed but seeing the childlike display had me laughing.

"Sometimes you need someone like him around," I stated casually, looking at Ardeth once more. "Otherwise the trip would be dreadfully boring."

He made a noise of agreement as he stroked Horus. "It is good that he can distract others from the hardships of the journey. It is needed to keep a distraction at times."

"A distraction? You call him just a distraction?" I teased.

"If I were to call someone a true distraction, it would be you." His tone was serious as he eyes bored into mine. That aura was back along with the look, and it felt as if I were in a small room with no way out.

My heart pounded in my chest as my face flushed. Though I knew I was attracted to him, I hadn't ever really given thought to what he might think about the whole affair. To have him say somewhat of the same sentiment as I held made the whole surreal situation a bit more real for me. He wasn't the type of man to give empty words or phrases and what he said: he meant. I knew intrinsically he would not lie to me about things and especially not something like this.

"Haha, you know, I'm just here to try to make people laugh and forget their worries!" I couldn't help the awkward high tone as I tried to cover the nervousness but Ardeth was astute. He only chuckled and drew his attention back to Horus, knowing I could no longer hold the conversation as it was.

I leaned back over the ship and looked up towards the stars again, allowing the cool air to run over my face to help clear the fierce blush on my cheeks. The stars were beautiful as they were before, some twinkling in laughter as they looked down on me and my miserable reaction to the most flirting I'd ever had in my life.

Jerks. As if the stars knew how hard it was to be told they were a distraction but the most beautiful, exotic man-star they'd ever seen.

I glanced back over at the man and chanced a small smile in his direction.

What I could not say back was that if I was a distraction, he was a sand storm, cascading around me until I could not see, hear, or think of anything but him. He was something you knew was coming and had no defenses for.

He would overwhelm me given the opportunity and I was not sure if I wanted to run for shelter or leap into the storm to let it take me.

* * *

Dawn broke on the second day and I was irritatingly awake. I hadn't slept well the night before and my grogginess was a testament of how much my dreams had invaded my sleep. I had dreamt of sand and desert, of Ardeth and of Egypt. I couldn't have been distracting, that was all him and it had to have been his fault for it. Somehow. Perhaps I should put dreams on the outlaw list as well, right underneath his dazzling smile.

Evie took pity on me and handed me a cup of tea and I gratefully took it without words and began to drink it slowly. It helped to wake up as the rest of the ship began to move around.

"Where are we?" I finally managed to ask. Forming words this early was difficult and I had never been a morning person.

"We will reach Karnak within another day," Ardeth answered. "It is good you rose early. We will need to be awake when we discuss our strategies." I grunted in assent as my capacity for words was used up at the moment. I grudgingly got up to my feet and shuffled over to Ardeth's side, where I slumped into the seat as I began to finally wake up.

As I sat down Rick was putting on his leather armbands and I saw the black ink of a faded tattoo on his right wrist. Gesturing to it with the half empty tea cup, I asked, "What tattoo is that? It's pretty."

"It is the sacred mark of the Medjai," Ardeth answered with a knowing smile.

"You are part of the medjai too?" I asked, amazed. I honestly hadn't thought to ask.

"No." The answer was short, brusque, and annoyed as he spared an irritated glance toward Ardeth.

"My friend, even if you deny it, that sacred mark claims you as a protector of man. A warrior of God. A medjai."

"And like I said before, this was slapped on me at an orphanage in Cairo." The argument must have been an old one, because Rick was already rolling his eyes in exasperation.

"Just because you do not accept the fate that brought you that mark does not mean it is done with you yet, O'Connell."

Rick sat on the bench with a sigh as he began cleaning his clip, ignoring the conversation. I heard Horus cry and belatedly noticed the bird was not on his usual perch of Ardeth's wrist. I saw the bird flying toward the Medjai and quietly leaned over to the side to give the animal room to land. As he did Ardeth caught his claws with his fingers and allowed the bird to settle his tired wings.

"If a man does not embrace his past, he has no future," Ardeth continued.

"Look." Rick took a moment to flick something out from the barrel of the gun. "Even if I was some sort of sacred Medjai, what good does that do me now?"

"It is the missing piece of your heart." I took another sip of tea as I just listening to the conversation and took the time to simply listen for a change. "If you embrace it, if you accept it, you can do anything."

"Sounds great," Rick replied as if he was not paying attention. Which, he probably wasn't if the annoyance of the topic of conversation was anything to go by. He finally placed the clip back into his gun and leaned forward, spinning the knife expertly in a few flourishes before sheathing it and putting that into his pocket as well. I quirked an eyebrow at the display: the man knew his way intimately around a knife. "Listen, so what can we expect from our good friend Imhotep?"

Ardeth knew he was turning the conversation and with one nod, allowed Rick to do so. "His powers are returning quickly. By the time he reaches Ahm Shere, even the Scorpion King will not be able to stop him."

Rick sighed and put his face in his hands in frustration.

"So is there a way to prevent him from gaining back his powers?" I asked.

"No. He is immortal when risen as part of the curse from the Hom-Dai. It allows him to suck the life from a mortal and use it to gain strength," Ardeth answered. "He cannot be stopped or defeated by mortal means, which is why it is important to not let him get to Ahm Shere." I nodded at that, mulling over how we could stop him.

"How did you defeat him before, then?"

"We read from the book of Amun Ra and it took his immortality away from him," Rick replied. I still felt the need to argue, to tell them that the book is nothing but phrases and passages, but willed the urge away. I had seen the mummy with my own eyes, I had seen the curator read from the book of the dead. It was only natural that the book of life be given the same supernatural capabilities as its counterpart.

"Do we have the book now?" Rick shook his head. "Jonathon lost the book as we were escaping from Hamunaptra. It's buried within the ruins at this point."

"Damn." Both Rick and Ardeth raised an eyebrow at my language and I rolled my eyes in return. It wasn't that I didn't swear, only that I didn't do it much and only when the situation merited it. I only drank more of my tea instead.

" _Medjai! My father needs you!"_ The words were in ancient Egyptian, spoken with a voice that I both recognized and did not. The three of us shared a look before we heard a scream, and Rick bolted up as his wife fell forward over the boat.

He jumped over the side of the ship and caught Evie's leg as Ardeth, Jonathon, and I ran after him. Ardeth and Jonathon caught his leg and I held both of Jonathon's and Ardeth's clothing as the strain of holding two people threatened to take them over the side as well. We fought to keep them on the side of the boat even as Evie thrashed at something unseen.

After a few moments she stopped fighting and went limp, finally allowing us the opportunity to get her back into the ship. The two men pulled Rick up and with him came Evie. As she finally made it into the boat and fell onto the floor, she began to stir. I sat down on the seats along with Jonathon, panting in both exertion and fright.

"Shit," I swore as I fought to gain my breath and stop my racing heart.

"Ditto," was Jonathon's wry reply. I snorted at his odd humor.

"Evie, are you all right?" Rick asked as he picked his wife off of the ground and held her bridal style. She blinked at him a few times as if trying to comprehend language. Her eyes were dull and cloudy as if she was on some sort of drug and Rick held her closer to him when she did not answer.

"Sit her down, O'Connell, she needs to sit."

"Right." He took a breath and let it out slowly. "Right." Rick did as Ardeth bade and brought her teacup that she had been drinking out of earlier. She sipped on it and her eyes seemed to brighten and clear but she continued to sip her tea as all of us came around her to sit. Rick held her to his side with an arm and finally she finished her tea.

"Are you all right now?" I asked her as I sat down beside of Jonathon.

"Yes. I am now." A sigh of relief at her answer and I began to finally relax my tense muscles.

"Evie, I know you haven't exactly been yourself lately with all these dreams and visions-" Rick began.

"No, no," Evie cut him off, but I was intrigued. Dreams and visions? This was the first I'd heard of the tale. "They're memories from my previous life. Honestly, I'm not losing my mind it all makes perfect sense now."

"And that's the reason why we found the bracelet?" Rick asked with disbelief.

"Exactly. I was its protector."

"Now do you believe, my friend?" Ardeth asked. "Clearly you were destined to protect this woman."

"Right. She's a reincarnated princess and I'm a warrior for God." The amount of sarcasm Rick had could be classified as a wonder of the world, and I was impressed at how easily he wielded it.

"And your son leads the way to Ahm Shere. Three sides of the pyramid. This was all preordained thousands of years ago."

"And how does the story end?" Evie asked quietly.

"Ah, only the journey is written. Not the destination." That was honestly the most Ardeth-like reply and I smiled at how much wit and vagueness suited him.

"Convenient," Rick replied sarcastically.

"How else do you explain Evie's visions? That it is your son who wears the bracelet? How do you explain your mark?"

"Coincidence."

"My friend, there is a fine line between coincidence and fate." Rick turned away from Ardeth, unwilling to continue the conversation.

It was quiet for a moment, before I spoke up. "Evie, not to bring up bad memories, but I heard you call for the Medjai." I looked once at Ardeth, then back at her. "What exactly did you see?"

"I saw my father, Seti the first killed by Imhotep and Anck-Su-Namun. I called for the Medjai when I saw them begin to attack." I nodded, processing the information. It was always contended on when Seti had died and how long he had reigned before his son took over for him. I suppose if he was murdered by his trusted advisors, they would want to cover up the information especially if the accused was sentenced to the Hom-Dai.

"And you were the protector of the bracelet?"

"The bracelet of the Scorpion King, yes. I fought for the right to guard my father as well, but lost to Anck-Su-Namun for the right." It took a few minutes for my academic based mind to outright reject, then rethink the possibility.

"So when do you see these dreams?" I asked her. "Was there any particular time or place? Any trigger that you can remember?"

Evie only shook her head. "The visions come when they come. I have no control and I don't know how to make them happen." She thought for a moment. "But…as I saw Anck-Su-Namun die, I heard a voice in the mists."

"A voice?" Rick asked, turning back to his wife fully.

"It was one of power. It was speaking of ritual chanting. It sounded familiar to me…" she trailed off as her features darkened.

"Don't worry about that for now," I told her. "We don't have to know the reason why your visions are happening. But we can use the knowledge that you learn from them. Maybe you will see a way to defeat Imhotep, or something we can use against him." She nodded and Rick pulled her closer to him, leaning his face against the top of her head as if to shield her.

"While you're at it, if you dream of any races, you'll let me know who wins, right?" Rick rolled his eyes while Evie reluctantly smiled. I snuck a glance at Ardeth, who caught my glance and turned to me.

With a smile we both knew what we were thinking. It was good to have Jonathon around even for a brief moment of levity. Ardeth had been right on the matter.

For now we all lapsed into quiet retrospection as the sun rose, illuminating the beautiful landscape around and below the ship. The second day had begun, with only five days left to save the world.


	4. Nightmares

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to favorite, review, and follow the story. You guys don't know how appreciative I am of all the feedback my old project is getting and I am blown away by all you. Thank you so much! Please continue to know what you think and I will do my best to continue to keep this story going as quick as possible.

This chapter does start out a bit on the darker side, so be warned. Otherwise, enjoy!

* * *

" _Why did you kill me?" the voice asked, accusingly. "You killed me." A bright flash of red dripped before my eyes. "Murderer."_

" _I'm not a murderer!" I cried back vehemently. I had never killed. I would never kill._

" _You killed me, even deny your crime." Red globs of blood flew outwards, splattering all across my body. They coated me with a warm, flowing layer of red liquid and I shuddered. "Even when my blood flows on your body, you deny me?"_

 _I wanted to vomit and my stomach rolled as the blood seemed to wrap around me. Choking me. Consuming me._

" _I didn't," I argued. I sounded confused. Lost._

" _Killer." A flash of red above me fluttered into view. Blood poured from the red fabric as it took shape and congealed into a human like apparition. "Do you see?" The creature moved aside the red fabric and showed a bullet wound in his chest. Blood poured from the open wound, cascading itself into the layer of blood slowly encasing my body. Joining until the layers became one and flowed toward my head to swallow me whole._

" _No." The man morphed further, his features becoming clearer. My eyes widened as I recognized the man I had shot at the museum._

" _Yes. You have killed me. Pay the price." Bloody hands reached for me and gripped my throat gently. "Die with me now." The hands began to squeeze and the blood ran down the arms and onto my body. "I demand your life as payment." I was choking, scratching frantically at the hands around my throat. I couldn't breathe and could not remove the appendages: the hands were too slick with his blood to hold onto._

" _Stop," I pleaded. The blood ran into my mouth, coating it too with the coppery taste of that which I had killed._

" _Pay the blood price." His wound opened farther and blood sprayed from it. I could almost see his heart beat from the growing hole in his chest. I cried out, howled, screamed in terror. The hole was going to consume me. It grew and grew, bigger and bigger, as the man came closer to my face. I could hear the pumping of his heartbeat like that of a drum, loud and beating against my own subconscious. "Look. Look at what you have done. LOOK AT WHAT YOU-"_

"AMBER!" I could hear screaming around me, a wail that seemed to be torn from the soul. Who was making that noise? "Amber!" Hands grabbed at me and I batted them away, not wanting the blood to coat me again. I didn't want the blood to touch me again. "It's me. Rick." I could taste the blood in my mouth, feel it smother my tongue. Light poured around me, blinding me, the heat exhausting me. Confusing me.

Strong hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled me upwards, turning me towards someone. I blinked my eyes frantically, trying to remove the blood from my vision. "Look at me." The noise stopped suddenly and I realized from the ache in my throat that it had been me making that haunting scream.

"I didn't mean to kill you. I had to protect them." My words stumbled from my mouth and I could not stop them, could not apologize to the bloody apparition of my sin.

" _Ya Amar_. Look at me. Please." The voice, so exotic. The man, so beautiful. I knew him.

"Ardeth?" Hands framed my face gently, forcing me to keep his gaze.

"You were having a nightmare. None of it was real." Ardeth. It was the beautiful man who knelt before me, his gaze so full of worry that it hurt my heart to see the grief on his face.

A nightmare? I could still feel the sheen of blood covering my skin, see the hole of the beating heart. Before I could be sick or understand what I was doing, I shifted and buried myself in Ardeth's chest. He did not hesitate in bringing his arms around me. With the feeling of terror starting to reside, the emotions left behind were too much for me to handle and I began to cry. This time I did not hide and I did not stop. I needed to release the overflow of emotion caused by the horrendous nightmare. To his credit, Ardeth only held me as my storm of tears wet his clothes; he murmured softly in Arabic in my ear as his arms gently anchored me to him. His voice, that soothing, exotic voice, kept my demons at bay and even began to calm me down until I could no longer see, taste, or feel the blood on me.

When I was breathing normally and the tears slowed I allowed myself to pull back from the safe haven of his arms. "I'm sorry," I apologized to the worried people around me. Ardeth kept his hands on my sides, anchoring me as I tried to gather what dignity I had left. Evie sat beside me on the bench and put an arm around my shoulders. Even Jonathon stood behind Rick, his features stricken with worry.

Rick knelt in front of me with a serious gaze. "What did you see?" I shook my head to stop him, ashamed, but he stopped me with a quick command. "No. You need to tell me. Only then can we help you." Any other time I would bristle and tell him that I could handle things on my own. But this death, this apparition was beyond what I had trained for or expected.

"I dreamed of the man I killed." When no one said anything, I breathed once and continued. "The one in the museum, when we first met. I killed one of the men. I thought I could ignore it and it would pass, but…I didn't expect…" I didn't know what to say, or how to explain what I had seen.

"The first kill, it's always the hardest." Rick's voice was solemn and grave. This voice carried the weight of one burdened with too much memories. "Sometimes you see their faces. Sometimes you don't."

"You…have nightmares?" I asked softly.

"Everyone has the nightmares," he confirmed. "New soldiers, retired soldiers. Anyone who has killed before, they all have the nightmares."

"You aren't weak, love," Evie soothed, knowing exactly the words I needed to hear. "You saved my life by killing that man. You saved the life of my husband. That isn't the mark of someone weak." She began to stroke my hair softly, as only a mother could. The soothing strokes helped to dissipate the lingering fear and tension. I was safe now.

"One of the most important things is to remember why you took that life," Ardeth agreed. "You did not kill him in cold blood. You killed him to protect us. You killed him to protect the entire world. You knew those mummies could have killed so many more, and you helped us stop the cultists before it was too late." His hands gently stroked my sides, soothing me. "I am glad that you were at my side that day. You saved my friends as well as me. I will be forever grateful, _ya helweh_." I did not know the term but something about hearing him speak in Arabic was soothing. Perhaps it was reminding me of being in his arms, in that safe haven when I needed it.

"Thank you all," I murmured. "I'm sorry for worrying all of you."

Awkwardly Rick placed a hand on my shoulder. "Look, it does get easier with time. You may never forget completely. But just remember what you're doing it for."

"You're doing it to save the world," Ardeth supplied. "Do not forget that you are a precious member of our group, one that will save the billions of lives on this planet from eternal damnation." I nodded as I started to accept the context of my kill, musing on the information. Rick clapped my shoulder once before letting go and standing up.

"All right let's go, give her space." He grabbed Jonathon by the arm and yanked him down to the back of the ship, Jonathon protesting all the way.

"Remember, I am forever grateful to what you have done for my family. For what you are doing now." Evie leaned in and kissed my cheek once. "Nothing you can say or do will make you less in my eyes. If you need anything at all, please come to me. I owe you a great debt that I may never be able to repay." With that she got up and walked away to join her husband and Jonathon at the other end of the ship.

"Do you have nightmares too?" I asked softly to the man holding me. The sunlight danced across his features, illuminating him as he watched me with those dark eyes.

"Many," he replied easily, surprising me with his honesty. "It is the burden of a warrior that you carry. No one will ever think less of you, at least, those who have taken a life will not." For a moment he was quiet, mulling over words, then he spoke again. "What if you had not killed that man and he had killed me instead?"

Instinctively my hands went to his shoulders and I grabbed a handful of his black robes in desperation. "No!" When a satisfied smile slid onto his face my hands relaxed but continued to hold onto his shoulders. With the fear of him leaving me in death, I could not let him go.

"Sometimes it is about a choice. Who would you protect? Who would you choose to live? These are questions that go through your mind every time you raise a weapon, even if it is instinctive." The smile broadened for a moment. "Though I am glad you chose for me to live." The way he said it with those dark eyes and low baritone made me shiver.

"I couldn't let you die."

"And would you kill if you knew it would save my life?" he asked softly.

The answer was immediate. "Yes." To my grateful surprise, he did not ask why. I was not ready to discuss that yet.

"What of Rick? Evelyn? Alex?"

"I would." I let my answer hang in the stillness around us, slowly coming to understand my instinctive responses. Now that I knew what it was to take a life, the weight of it, I realized that before I had started this journey that my worlds were only empty words of an innocent. Now that I had taken my first life I could swear it again, this time with the true knowledge of what I was claiming. "I would carry the weight of the world for them. That means death and killing." Ardeth nodded as he recognized the tone: the tone of heavy memories and that of understanding of life and death.

"It is rare to find one who is protective of those who are not their own family. I am glad to have met you, Amber of the City." With these silken tones he was easing my fear and terrors, making me forget of the horrible nightmares I had been subjected to.

"You are trying to distract me," I accused him.

"Only if it works," was the quick reply. With a slight tint of red to my cheeks, I looked away.

"Thank you," I murmured. "For helping."

"I could do nothing else. If you ever need me, just call for me and I will be there." There it was, a promise that could mean so many things. Did he mean for it to be so open ended? To have so many meanings? As I glanced at him I saw that his soft smile was still on his face but I could not read the undertones of his facial features. I did not know what to think. I was still too shaken to have the conversation of questions in my mind. I looked away again.

"You can depend on me too," I muttered lowly, unable to look him in the eye. My hands tightened on his clothing again as I forced myself to get out the words I needed to. "You know, you can call for me when you need me too." I could feel my chest tighten and the blush heat my face but I did not rescind the words.

His hands paused in their stroking and simply held me. I could not look at him, could not force myself to meet his gaze in this embarrassing moment. He was still, so still that I would have thought him gone if not for his touch at my sides. The air closed in on us again so that it was only him and I in the universe around us. I was so aware of him that I could almost see him without my gaze, sensing him with his aura alone.

"You honor me, _ya helweh._ " His sinful voice was music to my ears and a bow to my quivering heartstrings. I would never have enough of that voice, of that tone. It excited me in a way that I was not used to, but was beginning to recognize.

"What does that mean?" I asked, finally able to meet his gaze. It made my heart thump and my breath catch. His eyes were smoldering, dark, intense. Everything that made him Ardeth shining through in this one charged moment.

"I will tell you when you are ready to hear it," he returned. He finally released me and stood, his form towering over my sitting one. "For now, I want you to drink some tea and wake up. You need to make sure you drink enough during the day."

The swap from the dark, smoldering Ardeth to the caring Ardeth was nothing new but I was still shaken of how far he had gone this time. He knew it was time for him to leave before I went into mental overload and did so with a small smile, leaving me alone with my memories and the memory of what had just transpired.

I could not deny that I was attracted to him, but now I realized that my feelings were beginning to run deeper than that. To kill for someone I had only met three days ago? It was unheard of and unwise of me. I could not have fallen that hard and that fast for someone who I did not know.

Yet he had killed for me, to keep everyone safe in the museum. He offered to protect me now, to come when called. Now that I knew the weight of what he promised I could understand more of what he was. This man was dangerous, both to me and to the enemies around him. Yet for me he was kind and caring. He held me as I cried. He brought me back from the darkness of the stain on my soul.

No man would have done that, not in the city.

They would have run away, unable to cope with that which I had become and the burden that I now carried. Only Ardeth would have the courage to stay with me during this time and to not judge me for what had happened.

This man was different in every way and it was exciting, exhausting, and terrifying all in one.

He was different than anyone I had ever met and would probably be different than anyone that I would meet. I was starting to learn him more intimately than I had any other before him and it was exhillerating.

I did not know whether that was to be a curse, or a blessing.

Instead of musing further I reached for the water that was on the tray beside of me and drank it. It was warm due to the heat of the desert, much like the hands had been on my face.

Goddamit.

I did not want to think of him now, not when I was too unstable from my nightmare.

Or my salvation.

I flicked my gaze back over to Ardeth and noticed him speaking with Rick, Evie, and Izzy. My eyes stared at his strong back and the muscled arms that held me in my team of need.

Something between us was changing, whether I wanted it to or not. To be truthful I did not know what I wanted. I was too scared to look inside to see what I craved.

Fear would keep me teetering on the sword's edge for a while longer. But one day, I would fall, and only fate knew whether I would end up in love or heartbreak.

* * *

It was nighttime on Izzy's ship and I had not been able to sleep since my nightmare from earlier today. I still didn't like the idea that light _air_ was the only thing keeping me from falling to my death, and I especially did not appreciate that only Izzy would drive the ship. I eyed the man, wincing every time he tried to reopen his eyes.

I was anxious yet restless, worried about Alex. I was sure he was cared for at least somewhat because of Imhotep's perverse nature. But for how much longer? Alex had a mouth on him that I admired and a temperament reminiscent of a Cheshire cat. Because of the worry I couldn't sleep and was awake enough to take over.

"Izzy," I finally stated, sighing as I got to my feet. "Let me take over."

"You have no idea how to drive this thing," he murmured, still fighting sleep. Instead of sitting back down, I walked over to him and pointed to the compass.

"According to this we're bearing northwest, give or take a few degrees. And judging by the map, we won't get there by dawn, which means you can take over and land when you get up. You're about to fall asleep, Izzy. Just go ahead." He blinked as if the words didn't register, and then shifted his gaze to the bed a few feet away from the helm.

"I'll trust you this once." I chuckled once. "Just don't wreck the thing."

"Don't worry. I'm not that incompetent." With a sound to show he purely disagreed, he moved away and gave me the helm. I grabbed the wheel, noting there wasn't much pull in either direction, which made it almost mindless to steer. "I'll wake you if I need you. How about that?"

"Sure. Whatever." He snuggled down into his blankets, nearly falling asleep before his head hit his makeshift pillow. I shook my head and turned my attention to the night skies ahead. As I began to let the worries flow, I idly began to nibble on my fingernail.

Was Alex being cared for properly? From what I gathered, they only needed the bracelet, not the boy, so if Alex had angered someone enough he could have lost his arm. Did he have enough sense to stop when it was too much? He tended to lash out when he was the least bit worried with some sarcastic comment, borderline caustic, and though I appreciated the humor in most situations, I was afraid of that particular aspect of his personality.

And what of Imhotep? He had enough power to threaten the world once, so what was to say that he and his lover Anck-Su-Namun wouldn't bathe the world in blood and rule? With the horde of the army they sought, it was within easy grasp to take. A simple command to conquer the world. The Scorpion King had done the same, though his soul was taken when he completed it. However, Imhotep knew this. He wouldn't sell his soul to Anubis without taking much in return.

"You seem worried." I looked to my right to see Ardeth leaning up against the wall, his eyes devoid of any remains of sleep. He seemed to me like a sleeping tiger; relaxed, but wary and watchful of his surroundings.

"I am worried," I admitted. "Alex is still out there and we don't know what condition he is in."

"The boy will be fine," Ardeth stated.

"Maybe." I shook my head, and smiled softly. "He is stubborn, I'll give him that. I just feel bad for Rick and Evie. They're worried sick about Alex."

"As are you."

"As am I," I agreed again, and then fell silent. I felt uncomfortable knowing Ardeth was awake; for the moment I had the helm, I was alone with only my thoughts for company. Now he was awake and I knew his eyes could see far too much.

"Why do you not sleep?" he finally asked again, this time, propping an arm over a bent leg. His hair draped over his piercing eyes and his face was bathed in moonlight. I knew the muscles were underneath his black clothing and could easily imagine him without his black robe. In this moment he was beautiful, he was ethereal, and he was terryfing; he was a distraction.

"Can't." I finally managed to say, tearing my gaze away from the sight that had imprinted in my brain. "Don't need it. We've been sitting in this thing for a day. I don't really need to sleep." The nightmare was still too real and too fresh and I feared closing my eyes. I did not want to see the blood or to feel it on my skin again. I shivered as the memories assailed my conscious.

"You do not trust me." This was the heart of the matter, a truth I had come to realize. Perhaps the words weren't right, but the sentiment was there. I trusted him yet I was wary. Something about him put me on edge and kept me from fully relaxing around him. Perhaps it was because he was darkly handsome; my experience with handsome men wasn't the most pleasant of experiences. Perhaps it was because he was a fighter. I hadn't known a man capable of besting me in any type of combat, and I was used to having that superiority.

My silence galvanized him into action and he stood in one fluid movement, walking the few steps over to my side.

"Even now you tense. Why do you do this?"

Even I didn't know the answer. Yet, perhaps…it was because I was attracted to him. I could and would admit it to myself. He was everything I wanted in a man, and maybe because of that, I never wanted to fail any expectations he may have for me. Maybe it was because I was wary of the initial attraction I had to him, like if I gave in, I would lose myself. I had never known an attraction so powerful and instant. If I let myself go and he didn't return my feelings, or had to leave me, I probably wouldn't survive. Maybe it was because of the growing dependency that was beginning to form, and the fear that if I left that I would have lost my foundation for my world.

"I don't know," I finally settled on. My troubled gaze found the moon once again, yet I watched him out of the corner of my eyes. He slowly reached out his hand, knowing full well that I shrank away by a mere inch, and placed it on my shoulder.

"You've fought people and undead mummies, yet a mere man cannot get near you?" he asked, amusement and something else leaking into his voice.

"Mere wouldn't be something I would describe you with," I allowed.

"And what you describe me with?" Now the tone was even and controlled once more. I almost missed the feeling I had heard earlier, even though it did make me slightly uncomfortable.

"Strong. A leader." I shrugged and took another look at the compass. "You helped put a deranged, undead mummy into his grave. That isn't the mark of a mere man."

"Perhaps." I was acutely aware of his hand moving slowly to my other shoulder and tried my hardest not to arch my back. For the first time I wanted the touch to continue even though I was nervous. I wasn't as terrified of him being this close as I thought I would be. It reminded me of him holding me earlier during the whirlwind of my emotions and the comparison allowed me to breathe easier.

"But it shouldn't matter to you. Once we find Alex and kill the Scorpion King, I'll be back in London." _Sadly_. But I couldn't say that out loud.

"A warrior such as yourself shouldn't be afraid of me. We will fight side by side. Can I trust you to watch my back?" A ghost of a smile flittered across my face before it disappeared. He called me a warrior and to him, I was starting to believe I was one.

"You know you could," I answered, jumping slightly as the other hand landed on my left shoulder. "I haven't let you down yet, and I did help you on the bus." I was beginning to get used to him touching me because I did not pull away from the new intimacies he initiated with me.

"True," he agreed with amusement. "I do not wish to ride another bus in my lifetime." His thumbs began to massage the tense muscles. To my surprise he knew how to force them to relax, because I felt my shoulders began to sag as the tension left them. I shifted slightly as he moved close to a certain knot on my back and his hands immediately began to work out the cramped muscles.

"Don't worry," I assured, looking over my shoulder at him, this time, smiling fully. "It's usually twenty or so people crammed onto a bus riding down the road. Not that eventful."

"Still it is too many people in such a small place. I do not like it." As I gazed back at the Medjai, I silently agreed. He would wither in London. He belonged in the desert, a mysterious warrior guarding mankind's greatest threat. Sleeping under the stars, leading the race of warriors by day…I couldn't see him doing anything else. Especially not a desk job. My mouth twitched at the thought of him in a business suit. It would be hilarious and definitely a moment I would never forget.

"What?" he asked, seeing my smile. He continued to massage me and I found myself not minding as much. I felt my back brush against his body but I didn't jump. I was amazingly relaxed. In return, a smile was beginning to form on his face. Not wanting to stop him from truly smiling, I told him.

"Imagining you in a business suit." At his look, I dissolved into feminine giggles.

"I would imagine that you would not fit in suit either," he retorted dryly.

"Women don't wear suits," I corrected. "We wear dresses." Now he looked at me not as a warrior, but as a man. His hands stilled on my shoulders.

"I could imagine you in a dress," he replied. "Easily." For a second I felt the familiar nervousness. Then I felt the chaotic whirl of attraction. With his hands on my shoulders and his body inches from mine, I allowed myself to relax: to simply feel and experience.

"For your information," I began with a playful slap at his hands, "I _do_ wear dresses. I have no problem with them. They just get in the way when I'm at work or out like this."

"Trekking a desert in a balloon? You do that often?" he supplied, making me laugh in amusement.

"A dirigible," I corrected perversely, smirking at the small glower he sent my way. "And believe it or not, I love camping outside. My father and I go all the time." Unthinkingly, I leaned back to where my head touched his stomach and looked up at him impishly. "I can't really wear a dress while hiking in the mountains."

He gazed down at me, his features unreadable, and I realized that I had plastered myself against him, leaning back against him as if he were a close friend. I reddened and leaned forward, my gaze going back down to the compass as my guards dropped back in place again.

"My father says I can fit in a dress or in a pair of pants. He said it was his greatest achievement." I cleared my throat. "Anyways, you should get some sleep. I'll be here a while longer since I'm awake already." He hesitated but withdrew his hands and I was honest enough to admit I did miss the feel of them. However, he continued to stand behind me, making me acutely uncomfortable, yet aware of the feeling of rippling muscles that had pressed against my back. I hadn't expected the rush when I realized how hard his body was compared to my own, but it was pleasant.

"You did not offend me," he murmured after a few minutes of awkward silence. "But when the sun rises you should sleep. We will need it when we reach our next destination." He moved back to his position at the wall, knowing I wouldn't answer him. He was beginning to learn my tendencies and habits and I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. "Goodnight." He closed his eyes and laid his head back against the wall, leaving me alone once again with my thoughts and the night around me.

A few minutes later, after I saw him lying completely still, I chanced a look at the man who intrigued me on so many levels. He was calm, serene, yet he carried a strength even while asleep that tugged at my heart. I did have an urge to bury myself in his arms like a contented cat in sunshine, a pure feminine urge that didn't really surprise me anymore. I wanted him more so than any man I had met in London.

"Goodnight, Ardeth," I whispered huskily. When he didn't stir, I continued. "I may be wary, but with good reason. You could destroy me given the chance." _In more ways than one_.

And with that I turned back to the compass, the map, and the memories of his heated hands and the feeling of his muscled body pressed against mine.

* * *

When I awoke the next morning, it was to a gentle hand on my shoulder. I groaned and mumbled something incoherent, swatting at the hand to make it go away.

"Wake up." Ardeth. It had to be the man I was so confused and frazzled over. "We will arrive soon at Karnak." Slowly I opened my eyes, surprised to find that I was still tired. Usually I could wake myself at least to a small state of coherency, but it seemed that I didn't sleep as well as I thought I had. I turned my sleep filled eyes to the Medjai kneeling above me and tried to send a glare. It probably had the effect of a little kitten trying to look menacing, because he just quirked an eyebrow.

"Dun' wanna," I murmured, trying to blink away the haze in my vision.

"You must." A finger brushed away a lock of hair that landed in my eyes. "We will need you if there is a fight ahead." The finger lingered on my cheek but I was honestly too tired to react to it.

"You guys can handle it. I'll just protect the ship." I tried to throw the coat – which I had stolen for use of a blanket – over my head, but he caught the coat and pulled it away. The burst of harsh sunlight on tired eyes made me blink and groan so I finally sat up, rubbing my eyes sleepily. "How long was I out?"

"A few hours at best. If I could let you sleep, I would."

"S'okay," I murmured through a yawn. "I'll be up in a few minutes." We were close together, closer than I had believed we were, but fortunately my sleep induced state helped me overcome the blush that would have stained my cheeks. He was watching me with a curious expression; however, it seemed that he was going to stay with me until I fully woke up.

Smart man.

"Did you have any more nightmares?" he asked in concern. A warmth spread as I realized he was worried for me.

"No. I think I was too exhausted." It was the truth; I had gone to sleep in darkness and woken in light. I did not see the haunting apparition or the blood from before. Perhaps it was due to the talk I had with the men before and the comforting I received from Evie. I was grateful to all of them.

Ardeth nodded in acceptance. "Where is your gun?" he asked, and I pointed to my bag beside of me. "You actually slept unarmed?" I didn't know if his question was an illusion to my wariness of the night before or an attempt to tease me of my protective habits, but I smiled regardless.

"Of course not." I patted my calf. "I have my father's knife with me. Sentimentality more than anything," I explained, not wanting him to have the wrong idea that I didn't trust them.

"When did he give you the knife?" he questioned. More awake now, I leaned back, only to find the wall was directly behind me and Ardeth's body in front of me. Clever. I wasn't pinned yet I wasn't free. I could respect the ingenious tactics.

"When my brother died. He wanted me to always be prepared, no matter what." It was silent for a moment while Ardeth looked around to see who was paying us any attention. No one was close enough to truly overhear us.

"You had a brother?" he asked quietly. "I have not heard of him."

"Ryan," I murmured, looking away from him. "He was going to join the forces when he got old enough. He was mugged and killed before he got the chance."

"Was that what you spoke of when you say you could not lose another son?" I nodded. "I am sorry." I could see that Ardeth didn't want to push, but strangely, I wanted to give him the rest of the explanations.

"I was only six at the time. Ryan was eleven. When my father found out, he nearly died from his grief. I remember going into his room and asking him to let me learn how to protect myself. It was then that he had a reason to move on. He could prevent the same from happening to me. And he did."

"That's why you were taught the ways of a warrior," Ardeth supplied.

"Yeah. I've never had anyone really be able to take care of me, so I learned how to take care of myself." Now I was completely awake, the pang of sadness from Ryan enough to rouse me. I stretched and got Jonathon's attention.

"Oh, Amber. Look!" I grabbed the top of the wall and lazily lifted myself with only my arm to peer over the side of the dirigible, a quiet feat of strength Ardeth only quirked an eyebrow over, and saw our destination. "The real thing's better, isn't it?" I smiled, my mind equating his words with my other musing problems, and nodded.

"The real thing's always better," I agreed softly, letting myself slide back down. "Are you guarding the dirigible?" I asked Jonathon, knowing that he would immediately say yes. With his immediate agreement, I grinned and stood, ignoring the way Ardeth stood in time with me. "But won't little old you be bored here all by your lonesome?" My horrible Southern drawl caused him to wrinkle his nose in disgust.

"Never do that again," he stated. I walked over and ruffled his hair, grinning impishly at him.

"I won't make any promises."

Izzy began to lower us and I gave in to one last stretch, reaching my hands towards the sky and moving my neck around in a circle. I felt the pops as I worked my neck; sleeping on the wooden floor really wasn't that fun. However, I ignored the pain as I had been taught to do and reached for my gun belt, easily sliding it and hooking it into place. Once we landed, Rick was off the boat before we had a chance to anchor with Evie and even Ardeth on his heels. I snorted and went to tie the boat, but Izzy waved me off.

"Go on. You'll only screw it up." I took that as him trying to be nice and nodded, grinning at him. No matter what he thought, I did love his grouchy demeanor. Hilarious when combined to his leeriness of Rick and getting shot in the ass. I took off after the others, having no trouble following them, when I was tackled from the side.

I grunted as I fell to the ground and saw the flash of sun against metal. I didn't know who it was, but I immediately struck with my elbow, causing the knife to hesitate in the air, but it was all I needed. I rolled out from under him, only to see a second man in red rushing at me. He held a knife close to the length of my forearm, but he was stupidly running at me instead of trying to attack. Idiot. I grabbed his hand and knelt slightly, locking my body as I drug his arm up and over my shoulder, using his momentum and my body to roll him over my back and throw him in the opposite direction.

He fell and rolled, not really harmed, but goon number one was on his feet. I reached for my gun only to find that it wasn't there; I must have lost it in the initial tackle. Instead I reached for the knife on my calf and wielded it as goon number one circled me. He was watching me now, recognizing me as a small threat, though he still largely underestimated me. Finally he stepped forward, thrusting at my side, and I quickly parried with my hand, knocking the attack away from me. Goon number two came at my unprotected right side, but I used my momentum to spin into a roundhouse kick, catching him against the chin.

Goon number one spun with the force of my block and he staggered even as the second fell to the side. Taking the advantage, I snapped off a front kick, catching goon number two in the jaw and flinging him onto his back. He would be rocked, leaving me a chance to deal with goon number one. After goon number one got his footing, he leapt in the air and sliced down, giving me the opportunity to roll away from him. He landed and whirled, already thrusting at me, even as I did an awkward handspring to leap backwards and away from him. As I stumbled on my feet, I saw he was still coming, so I ducked and thrust towards his stomach.

Goon number one barely dodged the attack and he leapt away, finally realizing that I was a true threat to his life.

"Who are you?" I asked, never taking my eyes off of him. "Why are you trying to kill me?" I was pretty sure he was associated with Imhotep, though mistakes could always be made it was highly unlikely that he was innocent.

"No one," Goon one replied.

"Oh very clever, Odysseus," I drawled. "But that doesn't change a thing. If you keep attacking, I will be forced to kick your ass." His eyes darkened even as I smirked. If there was one thing I learned about this country, it was that women were never superior to men, and any allegation that one was so was sure to be put to rest. It was the best taunt I knew and by the looks of things, it was working.

"I will kill you for your impertinence," he growled.

"Only if you can catch me," I quipped back. I began to toss the knife back and forth between my hands even as Goon two finally regained his footing. He was clearly rocked but he was recovering quickly. Maybe I could take both of them, but the sand hampered a lot of my footwork, which was what I relied on, and I was still tired from the lack of sleep. So my odds were pretty much even by this point.

Damn.

"You're nothing but a woman," Goon two snarled, holding his bruising jaw.

"Yeah, but I already flattened you. Think of the possibilities." With that sarcasm, it was enough to launch Goon two into action, and with a flurry of slices and thrusts, he jumped on the offensive. I let him attack, watching him as a cat would a mouse, and let him tire himself out. My blocks were designed for efficiency in energy and in time, and I could probably defend longer than he could keep up this much of an attack.

"Amber!"

My name was enough to startle me, causing a slight opening in my otherwise impeccable defense. However, I was already instinctually leaping back, so the knife tore a piece of my clothing instead of my skin. Two gunshots rang out, each bullet flying true, so Goon one and Goon two slumped, each of them falling ungracefully to the sand. I forced myself to not gaze at the bodies as their blood began to stain the sand red, and stepped over them to where I had originally been tackled.

"The hell were you thinking?" Rick demanded as I knelt to sift through the sands. "Why didn't you just shoot them?"

"Because I lost my gun," I replied primly. "I can still adequately defend myself without it, you know." My fingers brushed cool metal and I lifted my gun and shook it, sighing as sand filtered out. I would definitely have to take it apart and clean it later.

"She was doing fine until you distracted her," Evie said, shooting a glance at Rick. He glared in return.

"Don't take her side," he warned. Evie wasn't fazed by his angry tone and merely smirked. I almost wished I could train her. She would make a great protégé.

"Anyways, what's done is done. Did you guys find Alex?" Evie shook her head.

"No, but he left us a clue."

"A clue?" I asked in disbelief.

"He created a sand castle of Philae. We can follow them."

"Then what are we waiting for?" I had to bury the laugh at Rick's glower of death, and I was sure he wanted nothing more than to strangle me. He led Evie away, leaving Ardeth and I behind to follow him, which was fine with me.

"You fight well," he acknowledged.

"Not as well as you, but I can hold my own." I shrugged. "That was child's play compared to what my father put me through."

"I see," he replied. He looked me up and down and I didn't bother to hide the faint blush on my cheeks. His eyes narrowed at the cut on my shirt. With a quick movement he grabbed me and brought me to him, eyeing the front of my shirt quickly.

"What?" I asked.

"Are you hurt? Did the knife cut you?" I looked down and poked a finger through the ripped fabric of my shirt. When I removed my finger with no blood he sighed with relief and released me, letting me take a step back to create space between us.

"Nope. Just got my shirt. And it was Evie's too." I rolled my shoulders and began to follow Rick and Evie. "And I have to clean out my gun," I mumbled with a sigh. "Stupid sand."

"Do you not enjoy the sand?" he asked. Even though I might not have been the brightest when it came to undercurrents of conversations, I felt the shift in the air when he spoke. This wasn't a simple question.

"I enjoy the sand just fine," I answered him. "Just not inside my gun." He was silent and his face impassive as he walked beside me.

"Perhaps it is time for your sword training."

"Maybe. Wouldn't be as bad if sand got on that." He chuckled once.

We reached the dirigible in silence. Rick and Evie got in, explained the situation and gave Izzy the new destination, and climbed into the boat. They both went up front as Jonathon silently watched them. Ardeth swung into the ship first and held out a hand for me. Usually I would become irate at the action, but Ardeth had just seen me fight. He knew what I was capable of. I also knew him well enough that this was a gesture meant to be kind.

Instead of ignoring it as I would have from any other man, I grasped his hand and let him help me inside. He kept me close for a few seconds before letting my hand slide from his. He turned his head to look at the two parents in the front of the boat and I followed his gaze. Rick was holding his wife, who was watching the horizon. Both were worried about their only child.

Watching their grief reminded me of my own; I couldn't let this become another Ryan. Ardeth turned back to me, his gaze watching and I realized that I had said it out loud. I looked away from him as the ship lurched into the air. Sure, he was young, but Alex reminded me of my brother in so many ways. I turned away from the piercing eyes that saw too much and went to Izzy.

"I think I can get us there in a day," Izzy stated as he poured over the maps in front of him. "Maybe a bit less."

"As long as we're flying." He looked up at me.

"This dirigible always flies! Unless Rick manages to get us into trouble."

"We're headed _to_ trouble, Izzy."

"Don't remind me," he replied sulkily. He peeked up at Rick and Evie before looking back down to his maps. "Even if O'Connell manages to get me shot every time, we'll make it."

"Just stay in the ship then."

"Dirigible." I smirked at the response; it was habit for him to correct anyone by this point.

"We'll take care of business."

I saw Ardeth walk over to Rick and Evie, and Jonathon saw him. He managed to get up the courage to walk to the grieving couple as the Medjai reached them. All of the friends began to talk and I felt the loneliness. I may have tagged along for the ride, but these were friends. This was the impenetrable circle. I was the tour guide Amber. Not the wife, family, or Medjai.

"Izzy." The severity of my tone gained his complete attention and he looked up at me. "If it comes down to a choice between me or Alex or one of them, choose them." He blinked.

"What?"

"I'm serious, Izzy. If I have to give my life for one of them to survive, I'll do it. They are meant to save the world. I'm no one compared to what they've done."

"Well you haven't gotten me shot." His voice was serious as were his eyes, even if his statement wasn't.

"I know. This is what I want. I have been raised to protect those who couldn't protect themselves. If I gave my life to save someone, my parents would be proud." Their grief would be enormous, I know. They would mourn my passing.

"No parents should outlive their child," Izzy argued.

"Exactly." Izzy watched me intently for a few charged seconds, then nodded.

"I'm not going to risk my neck for you."

"I'm not asking you to. I just want one thing from you." I reached into my pocket and pulled it out, opening my palm to show Izzy. It was a silver bracelet chain with different charms alluding to my brother and I. We had twin bracelets made two years before he had died, and I had kept mine and buried Ryan's with him. "These are charms my brother and I bought. I kept it with me to remind me of my brother, but in case I don't make it, I want you to take these and bury them with me." I pondered for a moment, then continued. "If you can't, I want you to bury them someplace special in the desert. Maybe the charms will bring someone else luck."

"Why me?" Izzy asked, eyeing the charms.

"Because if anyone's going to survive, it's going to be you," I said with a half-smile.

"You're goddamn damn right about that." He swiped them from my hand and stuffed them into his own pockets. "Fine, you want your charms buried, I can do that."

"And keep it between us."

"Whatever," Izzy muttered before going back to his maps. He was eclectic and obsessed with staying out of danger and not getting shot, but he would do as he said at least.

I went into the back of the boat and looked at the past behind us. Karnak was getting smaller and smaller as we whisked away to our next destination and I sighed.

Though I had told Izzy to prioritize the O'Connell family over me, I did not want to die. My own parents shouldn't lose another child to another disaster and I did not want them to bear the consequences if I passed away. Perhaps they could handle it, perhaps not. But I didn't want to lose Alex and I could not lose Ryan again. At this point in my heart they were interchangeable and since I could not save Ryan, I had to save Alex.

This time I was armed with knowledge of fighting and how to defend myself. I traveled with a sacred warrior of god and a family that had put an undead god mummy into his grave. This would be the best chance I had in staying alive and to save Alex and this time, I was in a position to do so.

My hands tightened on the wall of the ship and I could feel tears building in my eyes. Speaking of Ryan earlier had brought so much emotions and memories to the surface that I was on edge again.

I needed to make sure Alex survived this ordeal. I needed to make sure that I survived. Yet if I had the choice of choosing my life over Alex, I knew I would give my life away. If it had been any other human I might have been torn or hesitant. For Alex: I would give anything to see him safe.

On the last day of his life, Ryan had told me to 'be safe and take care'. He could not hold up his end of the promise when I said, 'you too'. Even now I broke my promise as I was going to danger and almost certain death. I could not be safe anymore. I had chosen the path of the protector and that meant that danger would be my constant companion.

In my heart I knew that it was the right choice. And as I looked up to the clear sky of Egypt, I knew Ryan was looking down on me too. He would agree what I was doing was right, even if I broke the promise that forever played in my brain. The familiar weight of my charms was missing but I knew that Ryan would still be with me, watching me.

A hand came onto my shoulder and I whirled, causing the pent up tears to fall down my cheeks.

"He is safe," Ardeth told me quietly, gazing at the trail of tears sliding down my cheeks.

"He's not," I argued, as more tears cascaded down the wet path of those before. "He could be killed, injured, we don't know that."

"He is not Ryan, Amber." At my brother's name from his lips I couldn't hold back a choked sob. I had told him my secrets. He knew what haunted me. But now he understood as no other had before him.

This was the same situation all over again: a reincarnation of the most tragic time of my life. It hurt me as it had hurt before and I grieved as I hadn't before. As I tried to hold myself together Ardeth surprised me by pulling my face into his chest and turning my face to look towards the back of the ship, away from all the others.

"No one can see you," he spoke softly. "I have you now. Let it out." I held back the sound of the sobs that were racking my body and as silently as I could I cried on the inviting chest of the man who held me.

I cried for Ryan and I cried for Alex; both who knew pain that they shouldn't and of trauma they never should have been exposed to. As the grief took over I threw caution to the wind and hugged him to me tightly as if I would never let him go. He allowed the contact, even going as far as to hug me tighter to him. No words were spoken as I cried and no words were needed. His actions said everything he needed to and my allowing of him to see me in this state was enough an action on my part.

Already he was honoring his promise: he was there in my time of need. I did not even have to call him for him to be here at my side.

In this moment I understood why people took a mate, why people chose to spend the rest of their life with someone. I had been alone for so long in my desire for acknowledgement that I had forgotten the essence of what it meant to be human: to break down and have another care for you in your time of need. I hadn't had another close to me other than my family that I had trusted enough to show weakness in front of. Yet I could think of no other that I would rather have hold me other than the enigmatic Ardeth.

I began to calm as the storm of grief passed but I remained in his arms as my sniffles and tears began to subside.

"I'm sorry," I apologized to him again.

"Do not be." I wiped my tears on the sleeve of my shirt.

"It's just…knowing Alex is safe, it doesn't help me forget Ryan." _And what could happen to Alex._

"He will be alive until we reach Ahm Shere," Ardeth reassured me. He could read me well and knew what I had to have thought of. "Nothing will happen to the boy before then. Imhotep could not go there otherwise."

"You're right," I murmured. "So we must find him beforehand." As if he could sense my strength returning to me, Ardeth stepped back and released me. He knew that if he remained I would be embarrassed or blush, and he was kind enough to spare me of that as I tried to get my emotions back under control.

"And we will," Ardeth replied easily. "Just as I know we can defeat Imhotep, I know we will save the boy. This time, you will help us save him." Oh, what a clever man he was, and I loved him for it.

Wait, love?

I looked back towards Ardeth with a smile. "We will save him. Thank you." Ardeth nodded once and left me alone to my devices, knowing that I needed space now.

Especially now that I had dropped a word that I did not need.

Did I love him? Had I fallen in love with him? It had only been three days since I had met the man, there couldn't have been any way for me to fall to the state of love in three days. I knew I would kill for him, and unconsciously admitted I loved him. Only fools would love someone they did not know, and I was no fool.

Yet a part of me rebelled. It called out to the exotic man and needed him beside me.

Shit, it might be love.

I was in trouble.

* * *

 _Ya Amar: in the right context, it means my moon, or my most beautiful._

 _Ya Helweh: my beautiful._


End file.
